Happy Easter, once again. Antoni, here, with another Inuyasha fanfic recommendation. This time I will be taking a look at Twenty Truths: My Daughter written by NalaxSimba and published on April 19, 2014. It’s rated T. It’s in English. It’s Family/Romance and the main pairing is Kohaku and Rin. Sesshoumaru is made to be Rin’s adoptive father, Jaken is still present as his lackey, and Inuyasha, Kouga, Ayame, and Kagome are mentioned. This fanfic is told in twenty themes chronicling Rin’s childhood, teenhood, and adulthood. So, I would say she ages from being 8 to 14 to 18 to her early 20’s. Out of all the Inuyasha couples, I truly love Kohaku and Rin when they are together. What makes them compatible as a couple is that they are not obnoxious with their bickering and squabbling, and they truly, genuinely, and purely care for each other. Sure, they may have been kids, with Kohaku being 11 years old and Rin being 8 years old, but they are a breath of fresh air compared to the whole soap opera antics that Inuyasha, Kikyo, and Kagome get themselves into. I support Kohaku and Rin as a couple then and I still support them to this very day. There is an innocence and radiance that these two have together. Whether it would be on the TV show or in fan works, they shine all thanks to the potential they have to grow as a couple to the point where I mark them as my OTP next to Inuyasha/Ayame, Ginta/Shunran, Miroku/Sango, Sesshoumaru/Kagome, and Shippo/Souten. When it comes to Sesshoumaru and Rin, I do not see them as a romantic couple in the slightest. First of all, Sesshoumaru is much more experienced and older than the youthful Rin, given that he appears to be about nineteen. In fact, I see their relationship as more of father and daughter. Think about it for a second. Rin was an orphan, whose parents and brother’s lives were lost to marauders. Surely, this experience would traumatize many a child. That is until she met an injured Sesshoumaru does she start to look up to him and admire him in a platonic way. She was then initially killed by Kouga’s wolves and Sesshoumaru used his Tenseiga to save her life. From there she has become his traveling companion and the way I interpret this is, he finally found an adoptive daughter through Rin, giving his own brand of discipline. In my mind, I always love to pair Sesshoumaru with Kagome, as he has Rin as his adoptive daughter and she has Shippou as an adoptive son. If they were to marry, then Rin would be the big sister to Shippou, thus making one strong family, with Sesshoumaru as the stern, disciplinarian, yet well-meaning father to his children, Kagome as the nurturing, strong-willed mother, Rin as the jolly, respectable, and loving older sister, and Shippou as her adorable little brother. Along the way, Sesshoumaru and Kagome will end up giving birth to little hanyos, making their family a little more exciting. Once Kohaku marries Rin and Shippou marries Souten, they will have kids of their own, thus making Sesshoumaru and Kagome grandparents in their 30s yet still mentally and physically active. Come to think of it, this calls for a fanart idea on my part. With all of this rambling aside, let’s get on to what I thought about the story. Ever since Rin has been living with Sesshoumaru, Jaken, and Ah-Un, she has become his adoptive daughter. He does things like buy kimonos, wrapping her under his mokomoko on frosty winters, and generally caring for her. That is until one fateful day that Rin had to live in Kaede’s village surrounded by humans. Rin comes of age and dates Kohaku, and being the stern father Sesshoumaru wants to ensure that her beau will keep his daughter safe, which is the same policy he gives him all the way up to marriage. By and large, this story is a very down-to-earth, simple, genuine, and lovely look into Rin’s family life with Sesshoumaru, Jaken, and Ah-Un. Even more so, this is a coming of age story of Rin’s journey from childhood to teenhood to womanhood. I dare not spoil the ending, but sufficed to say, it will leave one with tears of joy by how everything wraps up in a poignant, beautiful, and lovely way. The characters that really stole the show for me were Sesshoumaru, Kohaku, and Rin. Starting off with Sesshoumaru he does begin with his usual cold, overprotective self. However, as the story progresses he becomes slightly more understanding and compassionate not only as a father to Rin and future father-in-law to Kohaku but as a person. Kohaku starts off as a passionate and strong teenager not only in terms of his skills as a warrior but also how he persuades Sesshoumaru that he deeply loves Rin and wants to take her on a date. Eventually, in his adulthood, he proves himself as a loyal, noble husband to Rin. Rin is indubitably the main focus of this story, as this is her journey of becoming a woman. She starts off as the usually peppy and kind-hearted girl and she maintains that kindness and optimism all the way up to her adulthood. Jaken’s butt-monkey status has been thankfully reduced in this fanfic and is just the loyal servant. The other characters like Inuyasha, Kagome, Kouga, Ayame, and Kaede serve their purposes well. In terms of technicality, I did not spot one single error. Moreover, the layout is clean and well-organized. Overall, this was a touching Kohaku/Rin fanfic with Sesshoumaru as Rin’s adoptive father. Everything is so well-woven in a simple package that it comes off as charming and gentle. You know what I am going to give this fanfic. It deserves a full A+. On a technical standpoint, it’s flawless. From a narrative standpoint, it is excellent. Well, that’s all for now. Boy, taking a good look at these Inuyasha…
Sango
Hello, once again! Antoni, here, with yet another fanfic starring Inuyasha and Ayame. I will be taking a look at The Promise, which was written by darling krash, published on August 14, 2006, and last updated on September 30 of that same year. It’s rated M. It’s in English. It has eight chapters. It’s Romance/Drama, and aside from Inuyasha and Ayame as the main couple and main protagonists, we also have in this story Miroku, Sango, Kagome, Jakotsu, Kouga, an OC by the name of Doctor Kameko, and a whole bunch of villagers. As I read this fanfic, I cannot tell you how I excited I am to talk about it. So, without further ado, let’s get cracking. Jakotsu from the Band of Seven is attacking some villagers and marauding the overall peace. Inuyasha steps in to stop this pillage caused by the last of the Band of Seven or the Shichinintai, but little does he know, Ayame comes to aid him, as Jakotsu also murdered some members of her tribe. Together they finish Jakotsu off but at a price, Inuyasha’s palm is injured. Once Kagome brings in the bandages and disinfectants, Ayame willingly tends to Inuyasha’s wound. Meanwhile, Ayame’s den has been attacked by none other than Naraku, who has also taken her grandfather’s life. Inuyasha, sensing peril, rushes to go save her. Seeing Ayame injured, after her ordeal with Naraku, he rushes her to the village doctor, who tends to her wounds, feeds her well, and gives her lovely dresses. Whilst all of this is happening, Inuyasha and Ayame start becoming a lot closer than they think and this could be love, even though her grandfather’s dying words are for her to marry a warrior from Kouga’s tribe. What sells this story for me is the growing relationship between Inuyasha and Ayame. It is clear as night and day that even though Ayame is tied to her grandfather’s promise and Inuyasha tied to the past with Kikyo and the present with Kagome, these two are clearly meant for each other. For eight chapters, I definitely felt a lot of emotions surging through me and it kind of helped that there was a song in the form of I’ll Stay with You originally sung by Beth Hart in the fourth chapter, as Inuyasha sings a fragment of this to soothe Ayame. On a tangential note, as I heard the song on YouTube, I did imagine Richard Ian Cox singing the English version and Kappei Yamaguchi the Japanese version, which I thought was kind of cute. Sure, I would’ve loved the story to have gone longer, and develop how Kagome was going to further react to this, as well as how Kouga is going to take it. Probably, he would’ve decided that now that Ayame belongs to Inuyasha, he can very well be by Kagome’s side, though certain relationship issues will not stop Miroku, Kouga, Inuyasha, Sango, Kagome, and Ayame from destroying Naraku. Speaking of which, we could’ve had an epic battle involving these six and Naraku. However, as it is, the fanfic has been left abandoned for eleven to twelve years. To give it the benefit of the doubt, how it ended in the eighth chapter was at least satisfying knowing that Inuyasha and Ayame are an item, slight spoilers there. By and large, even though I would’ve loved to have more in this story, it is still a solid package full of heart. Inuyasha and Ayame, as always, steal the show in this fanfic. While Inuyasha maintains his brash, strong-minded, and defensive nature, it’s balanced out by a sensitive side. I, as the reader, can witness his vulnerability, when it comes to his past, as his human mother Izayoi was the only one who ever gave him any type of love and without her, he felt like no one else mattered, and his genuine, pure, steadfast love for Ayame. He will do everything in his power to not only protect Ayame from all harm but to also give her the love, affection, and time she truly deserves. Ayame maintains her steadfastness, loyalty, and sense of familial pride to her clan. She will do everything in her power to ensure that her grandfather, who was killed by Naraku, will be avenged, along with the rest of her tribe. She still has feelings for Kouga. However, as she met Inuyasha, he was very much the one who gave her his true love and protection. Even though she sees Kouga as her solution to unite their tribes, it is clear that her heart and her being belong to Inuyasha. I know I am going to sound like a broken record, but this is the fanfic which made me root for them as a couple. Not only do they present themselves as strong capable fighters who are intrepid enough to go physical, but they also have admiration and respect for each other. Thus emitting empathy from both of these characters. Not to mention, their chemistry is absolutely amazing, especially when they consider that they don’t have this type of emotional depth with their respective “partners”, Inuyasha with Kikyo then Kagome and Ayame with Kouga. As mentioned before, they knew they were destined for each other, even though they have to work it out if they truly are. It would be easy to make Kagome the jealous and clingy girl. However, she is someone who at first was befuddled, as to why Inuyasha would go out of his way to protect Ayame, but now she does get the hint, that these two have more genuine feelings for each other than Inuyasha has for Kagome and Kikyo combined. Sango ends up being rather emphatic in this story, as she not only understands Inuyasha’s vulnerability but Ayame’s growing feelings for him. She knows fully well that Inuyasha truly loves Ayame. Miroku is still his chivalrous pervert self, as he even suggests to Inuyasha that he should grope…
Hello, once again. Antoni, here, with another fan fiction “recommendation”, you will see why I put that in quotation marks. Let’s now switch our attention to what I consider my Inuyasha OTP, Inuyasha/Ayame, as I will be taking a look at The Blue Twin, which was written by Never Surrender, published on September 29, 2005, and last updated on December 9 of that same year. It’s rated T. It’s in English. It’s Drama/Romance. It has 23 chapters, and, obviously, the main pairing is Inuyasha/Ayame. Other characters involved are Miroku, Sango, Kagome Higurashi, Shippou, Kouga, Kaede, Sesshoumaru, Jaken, Myoga, and Kirara. There are also some OCs namely Kori, Kome, and Yume, more on them later. I did encounter this fanfic a few times and I was kind of excited to take a gander at it considering how much of a die-hard Inuyasha/Ayame shipper I am. With that said, let’s get on to what I thought about this particular fanfic. It’s a warm and peaceful day in Feudal Japan, where not much is happening. That is until someone who looks like Inuyasha, except with blue hair and attire, arrives, thus leaving Kagome, Shippou, Sango, Miroku, and, especially, Inuyasha in utter shock. That someone in question is his long-lost twin brother, Kori, and he is really excited to see Inuyasha after several years. Sesshoumaru, on the other hand, is less than enthusiastic. Along the way, there are new relationships to be made with Kouga and Kagome, Inuyasha and Ayame, and Kori and Kirara, who can somehow turn into a humanoid form, Miroku being wed to Sango, thus bearing his first child, some deceptions, broken relationships, and even a kinship to be formed between Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha, and Kori. By and large, the story was rather enjoyable, as I did enjoy how the characters interacted with each other. There was one major headscratcher, though, and it was, how on earth did Kirara obtain a humanoid form? Was there a certain power which made her do so at will? Are there any conditions she has to go through for it to happen? It was not thoroughly mentioned nor explained how that happened because in the original anime she can only go from her little cat form to her big, battle cat-like form with blazing flames. The fourth chapter, as proclaimed by the author, was a filler chapter and that was not really necessary other than to drag the main story’s plot. Speaking of filler, there were times some scenes did feel like filler, but it was not too much. At times, the story can be melodramatic, but it’s well-balanced with some humor, action scenes, and a few touching moments found in the climax and especially the ending. There are also some character deaths to be found in this fanfic but despite all that, I thought there were some moments in the final few chapters which were rather touching, sweet, and left a smile on my face. The characters were still quite enjoyable to witness. Inuyasha still has his trademark impulsivity, sarcasm, brashness, and overall jerk with a heart of gold nature. In spite of all that, he also shows a good amount of compassion, especially with Ayame. He was very much in character all throughout the fanfic. Not to reveal any major spoilers, but let’s just say I was really happy when Kori took off the beads of subjugation from Inuyasha. Now we get to the main OC of this fanfic, Kori. In terms of design, I cannot really imagine him with blue hair but the blue haori I can certainly envision. Personality-wise, he is the complete opposite of Inuyasha. He’s jolly, sweet-natured, lovable, and happy-go-lucky as opposed to Inuyasha’s occasional crabbiness and sarcasm. He bears a sword called the Ketsaiga, which can only kill fifty demons. There are times he can be annoying but not on the level where it is obnoxious. His brand of annoying is kind of endearing, as he has lived in the North all of his life, has only heard about certain key events in passing, and has never left his territory. Yet, how he manages to know all of these key events and people like Kouga, Sesshoumaru’s mokomoko and even Kikyo is beyond me. I can forgive the occasional annoyance I have with Kori, as he is at least entertaining and does not take too much screentime. When reading his dialogue, I kind of imagine Brad Swaile or Samuel Vincent voicing him on the English side and Tomokazu Seki on the Japanese side. By and large, he is a pretty fun addition to the cast and he works well off of Inuyasha. Ayame has toned down her high strung nature yet still keeps that strength within her, which makes her consistently awesome. It was a bit of a shame that she entered somewhere in the ninth chapter because I would’ve loved to see a lot more of her in the previous chapters and let her grow from there. In spite of all that, she still proves herself to be worthy of Inuyasha because of how strong of a character she is and I have been rooting for them to be together. Like I said, what happens to them in the climax and even the ending is really heartwarming, adorable, and sweet. Kirara does serve her purpose as the team mascot and main source of transportation and here, as mentioned earlier, she has a humanoid form. Again, why she ended up having that I will never know. It’s safe to say that she is loyal, smart, and she proves herself to be a capable, strong fighter in both her cat-demon form and her humanoid form. Sesshoumaru keeps his brand of coldness and indifference in this story, as he initially wants nothing to do with either Inuyasha or Kori. Throughout the story, he eventually warms up a little bit more to the point where he can tolerate both Inuyasha and Kori. What happens to him…