Chapter Text
The sky is completely clear as the family walks along the walkway, it was just like any normal day. Rin has her youngest daughter on her hip and she is holding her eldest daughter’s hand as they continue to make their way down the street. “Mama! Mama! Look, look.” Looking down at her daughter, Towa points over to the window display.
Rin notices a small, stuffed white dog sitting in the window. Smiling at her daughter, Rin nods to both of her girls and leads them inside of the store. Towa lets go of her mother’s hand and runs over to the window display, grabbing the small dog as runs up to Rin as she lifts her arms holding the plush her mother, “I want this one!” Towa exclaims before shyly adding, “Please, mama.”Rin smiles at her daughter holding the small dog in her hands, its appearance looks just like her husband's. She takes it from her and places it on the counter waiting for the man to ring them out. Towa jumps up and down when Rin hands her the dog. “Thank you, Mama!!”
Towa holds the dog close to her chest as the group exits the store. Rin reaches down and grabs Towa’s hand as they begin to cross the street. As the group makes their way back across the street to their car, a loud bang causes Rin to immediately pause and look toward the sound. Fire and smoke rage out of one of the shops near them. A cold feeling washes down Rin’s spine as another closer explosion causes the ground to shake. As Setsuna cries against Rin, a scream is heard down the road as a stampede of people makes their way toward them. Rin grips Setsuna to her hip tighter as she scrambles to jerk her wide-eyed, paralyzed daughter back toward the toy store, attempting to avoid the wild crowd.
“There’s been an explosion!” Rin hears someone yell as she attempts to weave through the crowd of people. Rin tightens her grip on Towa’s arm as the wave of people swarm around them.
“Towa, hold on to mama!” Rin shouts.
Towa snaps out of it somewhat as she grips her mother’s hand tighter. Rin’s ears ring just before another bang resounds next to her as the toy store explodes. Shards of glass fly as the sheer force of the explosion causes them and several unfortunate others to fly off their feet. Towa screams as her hand is wrenched from her mother’s. “Towa! No!!” Is all the young half-demon hears before her head audibly cracks against the cobblestone. Towa’s vision blurs and her head pounds, unable to find the strength to lift herself off the ground.
The smoke and fire make it hard to see as Rin and Setsuna are forced back by the crowd. “My baby! Towa, mama is coming!” Rin screams over the chaos. Towa watches as her tear-stained mother’s face gradually grows farther away from her as her vision tunnels to black.
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The bright light fills Towa's room as she opens her eyes, blinking the sleep away. Taking her time getting up and dressed, Towa makes her way down into the kitchen where her adoptive family sits around the table already eating breakfast. Mei jumps up in her seat with a bright smile stretched across her face, “Good morning, big sis Towa!” Towa hums in response as she makes her way over to the seat closest to the window.
“Finally awake now?” Sota, Towa’s adoptive father, jokes lightly. Reaching forward, Towa grabs 3 pancakes and some bacon and places them onto her plate. “You know Towa today marks 7 years since we found you wandering on the street after the horrible accident.” Nodding her head, Towa continues to stuff her face.
Moe lets out a sigh, “Towa dear how many times have I told you about eating like a ravenous animal? That is not how a lady is supposed to act.” Swallowing the food in her mouth quickly and wiping the crumbs from her face she looks over at Moe, “Sorry Mama Moe, I will try to remember next time.”
A loud bang fills the room causing Towa to jump out of her seat and look around frantically trying to find the source of the noise. Looking toward the window Towa notices an owl with multiple eyes staring at her from on the ledge, and a piece of paper clasped within its beak. Standing up from the table and walking over to the window to push it open, Towa reaches out and grabs the paper before watching the owl fly off.
“Towa? What do you have there?” Sota rises from the table making his way over to her, placing his hand on her shoulder looking down at the envelope in her hands. Towa looks up at him, holding up the letter.
“It’s addressed to me,” Towa says confused, observing the script written in perfect calligraphy, “from, uhm, Daiyokai Academy?” She turns the letter around, an intricate purple wax seal stamped on the back. Holding up the envelope a bit higher for him to see, she tears at the corner. Towa reaches in and pulls out a letter and a train ticket. Confused, she begins to read it aloud for her family:
Dear Miss Towa Higurashi,
It has come to our attention that you are a half-demon, and are pleased to invite you to attend our school, Daiyokai Academy. In this letter, you will find an enclosed list of necessary books and equipment that you will need for your first year. You will also find instructions on where to go to arrive at the Academy. Term begins on the 1st of September. We look forward to your attendance.
Yours sincerely,
Sesshomaru Taisho
Headmaster
Silence fills the air as Towa reads and rereads the letter. Finally, as she’s processed the contents of the letter, Towa speaks up, “I’m a half-demon?” Towa looks up at Sota, and instead of looking surprised, he nods to her.
“I figured it was something like this,” Sota sighs as he ushers Towa over to the living room. Towa places the letter gently on the coffee table and observes her adoptive father. There was a far-off look in his eyes as he spoke softly, “I remember when my sister received her letter.”
“Your sister got a letter too?”
Sota pauses to think for a moment before responding, “My father was a half-demon, and your Grandma Higurashi is human. I was born a human while my sister was born a half-demon,” Sota explains fondly and picks up the letter Towa set on the table, “I admit I was a little envious,” He says sheepishly with a chuckle. Moe and Mei join them on the couch, Mei snuggles up beside Towa as Moe sits beside Sota. “But after I saw how happy she was to be going to Daiyokai Academy I understood that I didn’t need to be jealous anymore.”
Towa looks at her adoptive father, a frown forms on her face as her brows scrunch up, “Papa Sota did you have any idea that I was a half-demon? How did this school know about this?” Sota lets out a sigh before looking over at Moe who gives him a slight nod, and then back at Towa, “the night we found you, we took you right to a hospital that I could trust to get you checked out,” Towa’s eyes are fixated on her father as he continues to explain the events of the day she was found by him and Moe, “your appearance reminded me of some of the demon friends my sister would bring home, and I wasn’t sure if you were fully human or not. When they ran tests on you they told us that you were indeed a half-demon, a dog demon at that. From that day on, we took you and you have been with us ever since.”
Towa looks down at her lap and lets out a sigh, “Why didn’t you tell me?”
Sota hesitates for a moment before answering, “We weren’t sure if you were going to remember anything from before we found you, so we wanted to wait for the right time to tell you.”
“So there is a school out there to teach me all of the things that I am going to need to learn?” Towa folds the letter back into the envelope and jumps up, running over to the stairs, “Well I should get packing because last time I checked, I only have about 2 days before I have to go to this fancy academy. I’ll let you know when I’m packed and ready to go over the school list with you.”
Towa makes her way into her room looking around trying to figure out what she was going to take with her. Her mind was racing, a half-demon? She didn’t know the first thing about being a half-demon. Towa gets lost in her thoughts as she begins to place some of her clothes inside the suitcase. After she's done, Towa grabs her letter and rereads the contents. She just hopes that she can fit in.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Two days later…
Towa adds a few more things into her suitcase and nervously looks over at the clock. 10:45 AM blinks red on her digital alarm clock. The train is scheduled to leave the station at 11:30 am and they are supposed to be leaving in 5 minutes. “Now or never,” Towa whispers to herself, grabbing the handle of her suitcase. She adjusts her red half button up top and makes sure that it is tucked into her jeans, grabbing her white peacoat that Moe had given her and throws it overtop her shirt. She grabs her bookbag and swings over her shoulder, and begins making her way downstairs and toward the car where Sota, Moe, and Mei all sit waiting for her. “Do you have everything that you will need, sweetheart, especially your ticket?” Moe asks gently. Nodding her head Towa slides in to sit next to Mei in the back seat. Towa turns her head to look out the window as they pull out of the driveway. Houses from their neighborhood turn into the tall buildings of the city as they make the 15-minute drive toward the station.
Mei is humming softly, swinging her legs back and forth, “I spy one dog, two dogs, three dogs….” Mei mumbles to herself.
The radio playing quietly in the background is talking about the weather. Moe sighs, “They say it’s supposed to storm later.”
“I really hope not,” Sota responds, his fingers tapping the steering wheel in thought, “Now, Towa, if you get nervous just remember that we are always a letter or hell even a phone call away.” Sota lets out a yelp as Moe smacks him on the arm, “Language, dear.” Towa lets out a chuckle watching the two of them from the back of the car. The tightness in her chest gets a bit worse as she feels the anxiety slowly creeping up her spine. Taking a deep breath she closes her eyes, laying her head against the window trying to calm down all the nerves that are flowing inside of her.
“Alright, we are here.”
Towa opens her eyes to them pulling into the train station parking lot. As they all unload out of the car, Towa makes her way to the trunk, grabbing her suitcase, and throwing her book bag over her shoulders. The group begins walking inside of the station when Towa feels a tugging on her sleeve, looking down Towa smiles at her little sister sticking her arms to be picked up. Sota grabs her suitcase as Towa bends down to lift Mei up. “I think you’re getting a little too big to be picked up like this, Mei,” Towa teases as they all continue to walk toward the train platform. They pass under a strange, glowing purple sign that reads: St. Gabriel Academy.
“Are you sure this is the platform?” Moe asks.
Towa shivers at the strange vibrations the sign gives off. For some reason, she knows this is the correct way, but pulls out the letter from her pocket to double-check, “Yes it says it in the directions that we take this train.”
As they get closer, Mei suddenly shoves her head into Towa’s neck letting out a small cry, “Towa do you have to go?” Stopping mid-step, Towa moves Mei’s head to get a better look at her sister’s tear-stained face, “Mei I will be able to see you during the school’s breaks. Don’t worry. I won’t be gone forever.” Towa places a kiss on her forehead before continuing to walk.
Arriving on the platform, Towa hands Mei over to Moe before looking around the platform at all of the other different types of families that are there sending their children off. Her eyes are drawn to a girl with raven black hair. She wears an unusual all-red jumpsuit. Standing next to her is a man nearly twice her height wearing a bunch of furs. She can make out the tiniest bit of their conversation, “Alright Moroha, you have all your stuff right? I don’t want to get a single phone call from that silly mutt that you call your father.” The girl laughs, “Yes Uncle Koga, I have all of my stuff, there’s no way that I would forget anything with you reminding me every ten minutes.”
Towa looks away from the pair now taking another look at her family. Towa smiles painfully before wrapping her arms tightly around Sota, “Thank you for taking care of me for all of these years, I do appreciate it.” Sota gently pulls away from the hug, resting his hands on her shoulders, “This isn’t goodbye forever Towa. Remember what I said? We are just a letter or phone call away.” Towa nods, wiping the stray tears from her cheeks. Turning, Towa hugs Moe just as tightly, and as she pulls away, she can hear the chime go off and an announcement rings over the loudspeaker,
THE TRAIN FOR ST. GABRIEL ACADEMY WILL BE PULLING OUT OF THE STATION IN 5 MINUTES, ALL PASSENGERS PLEASE BEGIN YOUR BOARDING AT THIS TIME.
Sota hands her the suitcase and Towa makes her way onto the train. Once past the door, she turns around to get one last look at the family that has raised her for the past 7 years of her life. She is going to miss not seeing them every day. Putting a smile on her face, she begins waving at them, “I love you guys!!” She yells, “I will write to you as soon as I get settled in. I promise.” The last few children boarding the train pass by her as she continues to stand there, waving at them until the door closes in front of her.
Towa feels her heart grip as she sighs, forcing her shoulders to relax before walking down the hall of the train trying to find an empty cabin to make herself comfortable in. Making her way past a bunch of rooms that have a bunch of other children chatting away, Towa finally makes it to a room that only has two other kids in it. One of them is the girl that Towa had seen earlier and the other is a girl with reddish hair and on top of her head rests a twin pair of small fawn-like ears. “Hi, I’m Towa, mind if I join you guys?” Watching as the two girls look at each other, Towa smiles as they both turn and give her a nod to enter.
Walking inside, Towa stands on her tippy toes as she struggles to place her suitcase in the overhead compartment. Towa lets out a small grunt as she tries to push the corner that got stuck on the lip of the compartment, “Here let me help you.” The girl stands on the seat with an impressive amount of balance and pushes the corner up. “Thanks,” Towa says as the girl bounces off the cabin bench back into hers. Towa sets her bag down on the bench and sits down, looking at her two cabin mates.
“Names Moroha, and that is Rion.” the girl in red pipes up first while sticking out her hand, offering it for Towa to shake. Towa smiles and accepts Moroha’s extended hand happily, “Nice to meet you Moroha and Rion, my name is Towa Higurashi.”
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The red-haired girl named Rion quietly observes the interaction. When Towa turns her attention to Rion, she gives Towa a small friendly smile. Towa extends her hand to her, smiling back, “It’s nice to meet you, Rion.”
Rion takes her hand, giving it a gentle shake back, “Likewise, Miss Towa.”
“Just Towa, please,” Towa laughs, “we’re close to the same age after all.”
The smaller girl just nods and smiles as she retracts her hand. Towa gets a better look at her, the mature formality clashes with her cute yellow sweater and flower patterned jeans. A silence that follows leaves Towa a little uneasy as she lets out a nervous laugh, “So…umm is your first time going to Daiyokai Academy?” Moroha shakes her head, “No I live there, but I was with my adoptive uncle. Rion’s dad also works at the school, but she was visiting her mother.”
The train jerks forward as it begins to slowly move. Moroha and Towa stand up to look out of the window. Towa spots Sota, Moe, and Mei still standing on the platform near where they said their goodbyes. Towa knocks on the window to try and get their attention. She watches as Mei turns her head, her big brown eyes widen as she says something and tugs on Sota’s hand, pointing in her direction. Sota and Moe look up and when they notice her in the window, they smile and wave. Towa feels tears sting at the corner of her eyes as she waves back. Moroha grins widely as she excitedly waves back at the man she was talking with earlier. “That’s my Uncle Koga,” Moroha says fondly, “he can be really annoying, but he’s cool.” Moroha stops waving, resting her hand on the window, “What about you, Towa? Is that your parents?”
Towa watches as the waving figures of her family get smaller, and she doesn’t stop waving until the train takes a turn and she can’t see them anymore. “Yeah, I owe them everything after they adopted me,” Towa says, turning to Moroha sadly, “I already miss them.” Moroha looks at her sympathetically, placing a hand on her shoulder.
“Tickets, please!” A voice from a cabin next to them asks loudly. There is the sound of a door sliding shut before the door to their cabin slides open. A tall man with pointed ears and wearing a crisp black vest and coat extends his gloved handout, “Tickets, please!” Rion is first to hand over her ticket while Moroha digs in her bag for hers. The conductor punches a hole into Rion’s ticket and hands it back to her. Towa reaches into her pocket and fishes out her ticket, placing it into the conductor's hand. “Ah-ha! Here it is!” Moroha yells triumphantly as she dumps the entire contents of her book bag out, “here ya go!” The conductor gives her a strange look as he takes her ticket too and punches both of them. After taking it back, Towa places it neatly into her bag as Moroha shoves all of her belongings back into her own, “I nearly freaked out! I thought I forgot it back home.”
The conductor tips his silk hat at them before sliding their cabin door shut. After he leaves, Moroha falls back into her seat, lounging her feet on the seat next to Towa. Rion shakes her head at her in amusement. Feeling a lot less anxious around her two new companions, she allows herself to finally relax against her seat. The excitement and anxiety from earlier starts to wear off leaving Towa exhausted.
Rion’s doe-ish teal eyes observe Towa curiously like she’s trying to figure out a puzzle, before asking, “Miss Towa, if I may ask, what kind of demon are you?” Rion questions respectfully.
Moroha perks up interestedly, “Yeah I was wondering the same thing,” Moroha sniffs, “I have trouble with picking up specific scents, but I can usually tell demons apart. With you I can’t tell at all because you smell like a human,” Moroha says with a pout. “I just need to practice more, that's all.”
“I guess I’m a dog demon? That's what Papa Sota told me.”
“What do you mean, ‘you guess’?” Rion questions kindly.
“You’re a dog demon?!” Moroha asks in shock.
Towa hesitates in answering. She looks down at her lap where she twiddles her thumbs nervously, “Well, it’s because I was adopted when I was four years old. I didn’t know what a half-demon was until I received my letter,” Moroha and Rion look at her sadly, but Towa laughs to lighten the conversation, “It’s alright! Actually, finding out explained a lot. And the family that adopted me took me in like I was their own daughter.” Moroha and Rion are silent as they stare at her. Towa sweats a little and smiles bashfully, “Is that a bad thing?”
Rion’s eyes widened into a slightly panicked look, “No, that’s not bad at all! I want to try and understand that's all.”
Moroha nods at Towa, “Yeah, what she said! I bet there’s a lot of things you don’t know, but if you need any help, just ask, okay?” Moroha grins, bumping her shoulder into Rion, “the both of us can.” Rion smiles and agrees.
Towa relaxes with a sigh of relief, “Thank you so much.”
“Don’t thank me,” Moroha says with an uncharacteristically small smile, looking away from Towa to look out the window, “That's what friends for.”
Towa glows happily, also turning to look out the window of the train. They watch as they pass onto a bridge, the sea’s waters below shimmer and sparkle in the sunlight. Mountains and trees in the distance seem so small. Towa stretches her legs out as she relaxes completely, smiling wistfully at the scenery passing by.
“Yeah, friends.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Towa spent the next couple of hours on the train watching the sunset from the window. Her and her cabin mates made small talk, but they mostly sat in comfortable silence. As the forest around them begins to fade, hills and mountains take their place. Looking further up the track Towa can see it, Daiyokai Academy. It sits nestled on top of a mountain; giant walls, spiral towers, and pointed spires made it look like it came out of a fantasy movie. The glimmer of silver, gold, and cobblestone fills Towa’s vision.
Towa jumps and looks at Moroha as she places her hand on her shoulder. “There it is Towa, don’t look so nervous it’s not as bad as it looks once you get inside.” Towa looks back out the window. How was she able to go to a school like this? Towa starts to feel her anxiety from earlier creep back up as the train comes to a slow stop.
Towa stands up from her seat, she stands to yank her luggage down from the storage compartment above her. Situating the last of her belongings, her small hands tremble as she zips up her book bag. Throwing it over her shoulder, she turns around to find Moroha and Rion are waiting at the door for her. They give her an encouraging smile as Moroha asks, “Ready to go?” Towa gives a nervous smile as she reminds herself to put on foot in front of the other. As they slowly start to funnel out of the train, more demon children are emerging from the cabins behind them, their bulky suitcases in tow. They leave the train, the children all huddle into groups as they wait for directions. Moroha and Rion are standing to Towa’s left and right respectfully. The warmth from their presence helps Towa feel a little better, but the autumn breeze around them still sends a chill down her spine. She tugs her peacoat closer to her body with a shiver.
Towa’s eyes widen as she spots a short green imp wearing heavy brown robes coming toward them from the path to the school. Wedged in his small clawed hand is a wooden staff that stands twice his size with two heads carved into the top of it. The small imp speaks up loudly, “Students! Attention!” He bangs his staff against the ground until conversations die down and it falls completely silent. Towa watches him pause to observe everyone before he speaks up again, “I am the Advisor to the Headmaster, Jaken. I’ll be leading you to the academy,” He turns around and yells again, “Keep up! No stragglers!” Rion’s fawn ears on top of her head twitch and Moroha twists a finger in her ear annoyed,” Could he be any louder?” Towa hears Moroha mumble to herself as she hikes her bookbag higher onto her shoulder and pulls at her suitcase. Together, make their way up the trail behind the small imp named Jaken. The dirt trail was wide enough that everyone could walk comfortably next to each other. Lanterns that hung from the trees light on their own as it started to grow darker.
Suddenly, Jaken stops in his tracks right before the entrance to a wooden bridge. Everyone stops just short behind him and hovers around silently. Jaken leaps up, twirling the staff above his head, then stabbing the end into the ground as he lands on his feet. “Release barrier!” Jaken yells. Towa then sees a distortion in the path in front of them, and as the staff releases an energy burst toward the haze, the air becomes clearer as the barrier opens up around the entrance. “Keep up!” Jaken yells behind his shoulder as everyone walks through the opening as Towa watches in awe. Rion giggles next to her, “Don’t fall behind,” she says as she loops their arms together, pulling Towa to walk alongside her. When they reach the entrance to the academy, two large wooden doors open up on their own as Jaken leads them inside. The inside of the academy was one of the biggest places Towa has ever seen. It looked like the inside of a castle, a large chandelier hangs from the ceiling, a grand staircase; however, it's a painting of a large white dog that hangs above the entrance to the dining hall that catches Towa’s eye.
“Leave your belongings here, they will be in your dorms when you arrive. Wait here,” Jaken says. He cracks the door open and slips inside. Towa sets her bookbag down next to her suitcase, listening to the quiet conversations pick up once Jaken leaves. Towa’s eyes snap back up to the painting again. She could’ve sworn for a split second the amber eyes of the great dog moved to look right at her. Towa feels herself jerk as she gets pulled by the arm of an extremely excited Moroha. “Towa, Towa this here is my cousin,” Moroha says.
Towa looks at the girl that stands in front of her. An eye-catching red streak stands vibrantly against her long dark brown hair. It spills down from a high ponytail that flows past her waist, her dark purple eyes draw her in as she studies the girl before her.
“Hi, my name is Towa. Nice to meet you,” Towa smiles at her, extending her hand out to the girl. Any family or friend of Moroha’s is a friend of hers. She waits for it to be taken but the girl turns away from her. “It is just like you Moroha to become friends with someone just as loud and obnoxious as you,” She says in a haughty tone. Towa allows her hand to fall down back to her side at the statement.
“Setsuna, don’t be like that.” Moroha pushes Setsuna's shoulder causing the girl to look at her and her eyes flash gold, “Stop it Moroha, we do not have time for your foolishness.” Towa looks at the girl that she knows as Setsuna; she seems to not really be a people person.
All of their heads turn to the great hall’s door as it cracks open again. Jaken stands, his beak-like mouth forms into a small smile before announcing, “I am pleased to welcome the new students to Daiyokai Academy!” He pushes open the door all the way and ushers them to step forward. Towa’s hands feel clammy as she walks inside with Moroha, Rion, and Setsuna. She watches at Setsuna out of the corner of her eye, looking incredibly bored. Towa wishes she could feel as relaxed as they look.
They all file into the back, standing shoulder to shoulder with Moroha and Rion. The great dining hall was filled with four long dark oak tables. Older students of different ages sit quietly, all their heads turned to look at the new arrivals. Loud, but powerful footsteps echo throughout the room. Attention is snapped toward the front and Towa watches in awe as a tall demon walks onto the stage, long white flowing fur trails behind him; on his forehead, a blue crescent moon and on his cheeks, two long magenta stripes sit against his pale skin. The solid black suit that he is wearing has no wrinkles or imperfections.
He walks to the front of the stage where the microphone is, “Good evening students, and welcome to Daiyokai Academy. I am Sesshomaru Taisho and I will be your headmaster for the duration of your time being here.” Sesshomaru’s eyes scan throughout the crowd of children. “This school was built by my father and mother to give to my brother and myself. The ability to hone our skills as demons, half-demon or otherwise; you will all learn the same as every other student,” Sesshomaru’s eyes narrow as he continues, “let this be a warning: this school does not tolerate bullying of any kind, if I or any of the professors notice bullying within these halls, a form of punishment will be given to the parties that are involved.”
Pausing as he looks back over the crowd, Sesshomaru's eyes lock on a small girl that is standing in the middle of the crowd next to his niece and his daughter. This girl's stark white hair and her red streak strike him instantly with familiarity. As Sesshomaru looks her over, he gets to her face; the same magenta eyes, the curve of her nose, the same smile he adored so much- No there could be no way that she could be here; she was gone, but yet here she is standing right before him, in his school that he had worked so hard to make it a place for her and her sister to live freely. Sesshomaru’s eyes widen slightly and he looks over at his wife, Rin, Towa’s mother. Rin gives him a confused look and then looks over in the direction that caught his attention. He watches as Rin's eyes find Towa and her hand comes up to cover her mouth, trying to compose herself.
Clearing his throat he goes back to his speech, “Now that you are all here we will begin with getting you all sorted into your houses, here is the Shikon-no-Tama,” Sesshomaru holds up a small round pearl, within swirls glowing purple energy, “this will sort you all into your houses. All you have to do is hold it and it will go through the four colors that represent each house: red, blue, green, and gold. Now let us begin.” Sesshomaru nods to Jaken as he scrambles to grab a long scroll, doing the seal as it spills out onto the ground.
Jaken clears his throat, “Now when I call your name, make your way to the front and Headmaster Sesshomaru will place the Shikon-no-Tama in your hands. Rion Kirin!”
Rion looks at both of them before slowly walking up to the stage. She stands before Sesshomaru as he places the jewel onto her hands. Rion watches intently as it shines brightly, bouncing between the different colors before finally landing on gold. “I see we have our first placement. Miss Rion, you will be in Hufflepuff.” Rion smiles as a thunderous applause erupts from what Towa assumes is Hufflepuffs table. She steps down the stairs gracefully and over to the table where they welcome her with open arms.
Towa taps her foot aggressively on the floor as name after name gets called. I can’t believe that I am here and I’m going to be put into a house with a bunch of other demons like me. Towa watches as people continue to go up and get sorted. Her anxiety spikes higher at the thought of being separated from her new friends, “I hope we are all in the same house together, Moroha.”
Moroha gives her an easy grin, “Don’t worry, everything is going to work out. Don’t be nervous-.”
“Moroha Taisho.”
“That's my cue!” Towa watches as Moroha practically skips up to the front of the room, standing in front of Headmaster Sesshomaru. Moroha smiles smartly as she sticks her hand out for the Headmaster to place the Shikon-no-Tama. The jewel starts to glow as it's done for others before, switching back and forth between colors several times before sticking with red. “Yes!!! Gryffindor!!” Moroha yells happily, looking at Sesshomaru with a smile forming on her face. The Gryffindor table cheers and claps and Moroha bounces to go join them.
Towa smiles fondly at Moroha’s enthusiastic hand waving until she hears her name called, “Towa Higurashi.” The room goes silent again, as she sees Moroha stop talking and snap her head up at her. Moroha gives her a thumbs-up as Towa nods at her nervously. Taking a deep breath, Towa’s heart rate speeds up as she slowly makes her way to the front, wiping her sweaty palms on her pants. Going up the steps, Towa stands directly in front of Headmaster Sesshomaru. ‘He is much more intimidating up close!’ Towa thinks to herself as she shyly sticks her hand out, but he pauses, staring at her with an odd look in his eyes. He gently places the pearl onto her outstretched hand.
Towa watches it intently as it flashes, RED, GOLD, RED, GOLD, over and over, until finally after about a minute of switching between colors, the jewel shines red brightly. Towa smiles and looks behind her over at Moroha, who is clapping and cheering enthusiastically along with her new housemates. Towa’s fingertips brush against Sesshomaru’s as she hands him back the jewel. Their eyes meet for a moment before Towa gives a small bow of respect. She heads down the steps toward her house's long oak table, they all greet her excitedly, as Towa squeezes in next to Moroha. "I am so glad we are in the same house together," Towa says, vibrating with excitement. Moroha gives Towa a playful nudge of her shoulder, "Hey, now that means we gotta stick together." Towa giggles and looks up at the sound of others called to be sorted, swept into the excitement of her housemates clapping and cheering when one is called into their house.
“Setsuna Taisho!”
Towa watches as the stand-offish girl named Setsuna from earlier strides confidently toward the front. She stands bored as Sesshomaru places the jewel in her palm. A flicker of colors lights up once again and Setsuna doesn’t even blink when it lands on blue. The Ravenclaw table bursts into excited yells as Setsuna simply turns and takes a seat at her respective table. After the last few are all sorted, the loud chatter quiets as the Headmaster speaks again, “All of you have been sorted into your houses. This is where you will stay your entire time at Daiyokai Academy. Now dinner will begin shortly, afterwards, you will be sent up to your house's dormitory.”
Conversations pick back up around Towa as she watches Headmaster Sesshomaru walk away from the podium, stopping in front of a beautiful doe-eyed woman sitting at the end of the professor’s table. She looked slightly distressed, speaking in panicked hushed tones. Towa shakes her head as Moroha grabs her attention, introducing her to the people around them.
Piles of different steaming hot foods are suddenly placed in front of them. Towa looks on in awe as Moroha snatches a chicken leg and continues to pile her plate with a little bit of everything. Towa grabs an odd-looking glazed ball and pops it in her mouth. She chews, confused at the taste, “Moroha, what is this?” Moroha pauses mid-chew and wipes her mouth, “oh, that's a glazed demon root ball,” she pauses to swallow and reaches to grab one, breaking it in half for Towa to look at, “see? The inside looks bright green, that's how you can tell,” Moroha explains, popping one half of it into her mouth, “it’s supposed to be good for you.” Towa takes the other half from her and pops it in her mouth, “You know what, I think I like it!” They giggle as they continue to eat.
An hour passes, and Moroha pushes her plate away and lays her head down, “I am stuffed!” Towa groans in agreement, feeling sleepy from eating such a good meal. Others appear to feel the same as they all are talking amongst themselves instead of eating. There is a clap from the front as Jaken speaks up, “Dinner is wrapping up! An assigned older student will be leading you to your house's dormitories. Don’t stray from your group! There is plenty of time for exploring before your classes start on Monday. Dismissed!”
“Gryffindor’s, follow me. This way!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rin watches as all of the students begin to get up from their tables making their way out of the room. All of her emotions came flooding as the tears began to form in her eyes. Rin catches sight of short white hair and automatically stands up from her seat. Rin begins to walk after Towa but before she could make it even two steps she is pulled off into one of the corners by Sesshomaru. Looking up at him, tears fall from Rin’s eyes as Sesshomaru shakes his head at his wife.
"No, Rin. We must not say anything to her."
Rin’s face crumbles, "What do you mean?! That is our baby and you just want me to stand by and not go to her? Do you have any idea the pain I have felt over the years knowing that I was the one that lost her?" Sesshomaru lets out a sigh before placing his hand on her face. "She does not remember. Anything before the accident is lost to her." Rin takes a step back looking at him trying to piece together what he just said. "How...how do you know that?”
Sesshomaru watches as Rin struggles to control her angry tears. He looks away, struggling with his response. "She does not recognize me." Rin lets out a small cry as she collapses in on herself, hugging her arms to her body. "So she wouldn't remember me either?" Sesshomaru's lack of response speaks for itself as she steps back into him, slowly unwinding her arms and resting her head on his shoulders. Sesshomaru's sharp hearing picks up on Rin's rapid heartbeat and small sniffles as she tries to compose herself, "Okay, okay."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Towa starts to get overwhelmed as she tries to remember every corridor and turn they make. The older demon boy leading them stops in front of a door. In the middle of the door lies a large silver door knocker in the shape of a lions face.
“Good evening, great lion.”
The lion opens its metal silver eyes and scrunches its nose, “Ahh, it is you,” it speaks in a deep voice, the metal ring hanging from its mouth knocks lightly against the door as it speaks, “I see you have brought new cubs tonight.” The older demon boy nods as the lion gives a heavy sigh, “I require the password.”
“Iron Reaver Soul Stealer,” The boy speaks confidently, and the lion’s metal eyes shut as the sound of the door unlocks.
“Correct. You may proceed. Welcome, young cubs.”
As they all file in together, Towa looks around wonder at couches and bookcases that fill the room; a big fireplace off to the side is already lit.
“This is the common room,” he says, “Girls rooms are on the left, and boys rooms are on the right. Remember the password as you’ll need it to go back into the dorm every time you enter.”
“So, want to be dormmates?” Moroha asks, leading Towa to the girl's section.
“Yeah!” Towa says excitedly.
Moroha smiles at her, twisting the doorknob and throwing it open, “Room sweet room, dormmate!”
Towa looks around in wonder as she looks around their new room. ‘This is much bigger than my room back at home,’ Towa thinks to herself, taking it all in. Two simple, twin-sized beds sit on opposite sides of the room, a window in the middle has a small ledge that is big enough that it can be sat on. A Study desk and dresser sit in the corner of the room in front of each bed. Their belongings sit neatly in the middle of the floor.
“We just picked this room, how is our stuff here?” Towa ponders as she sorts through her stuff making sure it’s all there.
“Who knows? I call dibs on this bed!” Moroha says as she launches herself on the bed to the right, “Ahhh, this feels nice. I am so ready to get some sleep,” she says as a huge yawn rips out of her. Towa smiles and walks over to her bed, sitting on top of it. She smoothes over the wrinkles in the white sheets with her hand.
“Yeah, but let's change into our pajamas first.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sitting at his desk, Sesshomaru sorts through all of the different paperwork that must be gone through with all of the new students that have arrived. His eyes land on a single piece of paper separated from that rest that reads the name TOWA HIGURASHI. Picking up the papers, Sesshomaru glances up at the door to his office just as it is slammed open by his very angry wife, “Sesshomaru what the hell was that back there?!” Walking over to his desk Rins face contorts into one of sadness and anger, “Rin…my dear,” Sesshomaru starts carefully but Rin’s loud sigh cuts him off, “No don’t ‘my dear’ me mister, how could you keep me from going and hugging our daughter?”
Standing from his desk, Sesshomaru goes over to Rin and places his hands on her shoulders which causes Rin to push them off of him, “No, don’t touch me. I am so angry with you. Do you even understand the pain that I am in right now?” Sesshomaru attempts to speak again, but before a word can leave his lips Rin cuts him off again, “No you don’t, you were not there that day…you didn’t have to see the scared look on our daughters’ faces as the explosions went off.” Rins body begins to shake as tears begin to spill from her eyes. “You didn’t have to…have to feel her hand slip from yours as the crowd pushed and pulled…” Placing her hand over her heart, Rin lets out a sob and tries to catch her breath. Sesshomaru can feel the pain and sadness that his wife is feeling, and it was not something that he liked to endure.
“For nights I stayed up wondering what I did wrong….How…how could I lose our baby…I am her mother and…and…I let go of her hand,” Rin sobs as the grief begins to become too much, and cannot speak anymore. Sesshomaru pulls her into his arms and holds her against his chest, “Rin, calm down.” Running his hand through her hair he places a soft kiss on her head, “You are a wonderful mother and no one can take that away from you.”
Rin continues to cry against him as speaks wetly through her hiccups, “She doesn’t even…even remember us. How are we supposed to go day by day knowing that our piece of eternity is here and we can’t…I can’t…” Another sob makes its way out of Rin as she holds onto him tighter.
“Rin it is okay, we will figure something out I promise you.”
Rin looks up at Sesshomaru, “How will this be okay? That is our baby…I have to teach her one day!” Rin gasps, “what are we going to do about Setsuna?” Sesshomaru wipes away the tears from Rins face, “We will deal with that when the time comes.” Rin lets out a frustrated sigh and pulls away from him slightly, “But how! The last time we had a conversation with Setsuna about her Towa we had to remove her memories.” Rin looks toward her feet before moving away completely from Sesshomaru. She makes her way to the couch that sits in the middle of the study.
“I can still hear her cries, begging me to bring her back….how she wouldn’t eat for days…never wanting to sleep.” Rin covers her face with her hands, “I can still remember her holding onto me and just crying for hours…..gripping the only thing that was left on the ground where Towa was.” Rin can vividly remember when she ran back to the street where Towa had gotten separated from them. How when she ran to the spot she last saw her daughter, the only thing that was left was that tiny stuffed dog Towa was so excited to have only a mere few hours before.
Looking over at her husband again, Rin can see the pain that filled his eyes. When they first met Rin had a hard time understanding what Sesshomaru was thinking, but over the years of knowing each other, she started to learn. When they started dating it became clearer, and finally, after they were married he became like an open book to her. Rin felt awful at yelling at him, completely forgetting that her husband was too in pain.
“Rin the pain you felt over losing Towa, I understand. We are connected in more ways than one, and seeing both you and Setsuna in pain is something I do not like to see,” he says. Sighing, Sesshomaru goes back over to his desk and grabs the paper on Towa looking at it a little more, “Now the real question is what are we going to do about Towa now.”
Before Rin is able to speak a smaller voice fills the air, “What about Towa?” Turning and looking at the door Rin sees her youngest standing in the door frame. Setsuna rubs the sleep from her eye while looking at her mother and father. Setsuna feels more awake as she notices her mother’s tears, “Mother, why are you crying?” Setsuna watches as Rin quickly wipes away the tears that cover her face. Rin gives a watery smile as she pats the couch cushion next to her. Setsuna doesn’t hesitate to join her mother as she joins her on the couch, laying her head down on Rin’s lap. Rin begins to run a gentle hand through Setsuna’s long dark hair, “It is nothing, my dear. Your Father and I were just discussing some things from our past, and as for Towa your father was explaining to me that she is a half-demon but her medical records indicate that she has a lot of excess demon energy within her.”
Setsuna nods her head, “Do we know if she is going to need extra training when it comes to using her yokai powers?” Setsuna questions right before a yawn escapes her. Sesshomaru nods his head, “Yes she is going to need a lot of help. I was thinking of entrusting that task to you and Moroha. That is if you think you are up for it.” She nods her head before as her eyes begin to slowly close, the feeling of her mother’s fingers running through her hair lulls Setsuna asleep. Sesshomaru looks at Rin and Setsuna and a ghost of a smile forms on his face. He walks around the couch, bending down, and cradles Setsuna into his arms as he lifts her up, “Alright my little butterfly let’s get you to bed.”
Sesshomaru exits the room with Setsuna, leaving Rin alone in the study. She sits in silence for a moment until getting up and striding toward Sesshomaru’s desk. Rin grabs Towa’s paper and stares at her daughter's name at the top. This has all the information about her oldest daughter. Rin’s fist clenches as she pictures the last time she saw Towa. Her eldest's tear-stained face looks back at her in her mind's eye. Rin swallows thickly as she takes a seat back on the couch. The answers to her many questions lie within this single piece of paper, and she intends on studying it fully.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Towa places her suitcase on top of her twin-size bed. Opening the suitcase Towa begins to go through the contents and begins placing all of her clothing into the small dresser that is situated near her bed. Reaching back into the suitcase, Towa pulls out a small picture frame that holds a photo of herself, Sota, Moe, and Mei. She trails a finger gently over their faces, “Good night everyone,” She whispers to herself as she lets out a sigh, placing it on the nightstand.
Grabbing a pair of her silk pajamas, Towa quickly gets dressed before climbing into her bed. Pulling the blankets up to her chest, Towa calls out, “Hey, Moroha?” Towa turns over and looks over at Moroha who is rustling around in the other bed that is situated on the opposite wall.
“Yeah what is it?” Moroha stops moving and situates herself onto her side to look across the room to Towa.
“I meant to ask you this earlier but you and the headmaster share a last name, is that just a coincidence, or...” Towa trails off and shifts herself in her bed again as she awaits Moroha’s answer.
“He is my uncle. My father is his younger half-brother. They share the same father but different mothers. My father's mother was a human that my grandpa fell in love with and Uncle Sesshomaru's mother is a beautiful demoness who was grandpas, first wife.” Moroha lets out a loud yawn and then rubs her eyes.
“Ah, I see. So then that would make Setsuna his daughter, right?” Towa ponders aloud to Moroha. When she doesn’t receive a response Towa looks over at Moroha confused, “Moroha?” Moroha answers with a loud snore. Towa looks away with a fond smile.
“Good Night, Moroha.”
Towa turns over in her bed, closing her eyes, letting the events of the day sink in. Tomorrow marks the start of her new life here and as scary as it may seem she is definitely ready for whatever may come.