A/N: Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Even to those of you who don't celebrate it. ^_^ This story is pure fluff mixed with traces of angst. Moreover, this is fluff with the Fluffy-sama himself, so expect mild oocness. Because Fluffy's personality unfortunately is not conducive to fluff. Hope you enjoy though!
In accordance with my record of epic failure in writing holiday fics on time, this one isn't finished yet. Despite working on it for two days straight. XDD However, unlike last time, I WILL NOT LEAVE THIS HANGING. In fact, I will finish the Halloween fic soon also. :33
"Thanks...giving?"
"Mmhm."
"What the hell's that?"
"It's just like it sounds--you get together with your friends and family to appreciate what you have and usually eat a huge meal that almost always involves turkey."
The white-haired hanyou simply crossed his arms and pouted. "You dragged me off to the present for that? We have more important things to do, Kagome! Like hunting down Naraku--"
"Don't be such a spoil sport, Inuyasha!" The fifteen-year-old scowled and put her hands on her hips. "It'll be fun. You'll love it!"
"Hmph. Still can't see why we couldn't just do this back in the Feudal Era..." Inuyasha continued to sulk, determining that he would not, in fact have anything resembling 'fun.'
"Ugghhhh!" she cried, starting to get annoyed. "It's Thanksgiving, for crying out loud. I spend so much time there these days that I barely have any time to study for important tests or anything! The holidays I'm spending with my family."
"But--"
"Sit boy!" A loud crashing sound followed.
"Oww, damn it! Why do you keep doing that?!" But Kagome had already turned around and started walking away.
"Hey! I'm talking to you! Kagome--"
"I'll see you after class, Inuyasha!" she called back as she waved. "Oh, and Yuka, Eri, and Ayumi are coming after school to help set up for dinner, so you better cover up your ears!"
She left the hanyou in a half-sitting position, wondering what the hell had just happened to him. "Thanksgiving, huh..." Inuyasha mumbled to himself as his human companion left.
---
"So, Kagome, is your bad-boy boyfriend gonna be there?"
"He'd better not try anything funny!"
"If he does, he'll be sorry!"
"But don't forget, we have to be supportive."
"...Yeah. Kagome gets so depressed when we talk down about him..."
"Ahahaha. Girls, girls! Everything'll be fine. Inuyasha--" Kagome trailed off mid-sentence when she saw said half-demon standing several feet ahead of her, sporting a huge grin and what appeared to be a dead turkey--wait, a dead turkey?!--slung over his shoulder. She went instantly pale, and stared back-and-forth between Inuyasha and her three friends before speaking shakily. "Uhh...g-girls...would you excuse me for a few moments? I need to speak with Inuyasha...f-for a moment, ehehehe..."
"Hey Kagome, what's up--"
"Inuyasha! What. Do. You. Think. You're. Doing?!" she hissed at him, trying to stand in such a way as to hide the turkey from view, although the damage had already been done.
"What? I covered up my ears like you asked!" he grumbled, motioning towards the bandana-like cloth that covered his dog ears.
"What do you mean, 'what'?! That!" she cried, pointing to the dead bird on his shoulder.
"What the hell is your problem? I thought we were supposed to eat turkey for dinner! So I got you one."
"Not raw!"
"I didn't say we'd eat it raw! You'd cook it, obviously. Though...I still like your ninja food better..."
"That's not the POINT. Seriously! Did you just go out and kill a turkey?! My friends already think you're a delinquent; what'll they say if they find out?! You'd better not have any bloodstains on that robe..."
"Would you stop having a cow for one second? How the hell else were we supposed to get a turkey if I didn't kill one?"
"There are stores for that, Inuyasha. Stores like the ones that sell instant noodles." She huffed, and then gave a soft sigh. "Now, get rid of that awful thing before my friends see it!"
The hanyou simply rolled his eyes and nodded. "Yeah, yeah. I hear ya," he called, as he turned and headed back towards Higurashi Shrine.
"Kagome, was that a--"
She cut off Yuka by giving her trademark long-suffering sigh that translated into either "Don't ask" or "I don't want to talk about it," prompting her friend to rapidly shut her mouth.
---
The rest of that evening was an...interesting affair. Kagome and her friends spent endless hours chattering about Thanksgiving and how Hojo was coming over with his family too later on, and "how are you gonna tell him you already have a boyfriend?", and similar gossip. Meanwhile Inuyasha got dressed for dinner, setting his Tetsusaiga aside in Kagome's room and straightening up his robe of the Fire-Rat (Sota had shown him how to get out the wrinkles earlier), gave the customary greetings to Kagome and her friends, and helped set up for dinner. He was a perfect gentleman all through the afternoon as Thanksgiving dinner--including the already purchased turkey--was being cooked, and it was all so wrong. If there was one thing you could always count on with Inuyasha, it was his noticeable lack of manners in any and every situation. Kagome didn't seem to notice her "boyfriend"'s odd behavior, perhaps grateful for Inuyasha's rare and uncharacteristic bout of good manners and going along with the adage "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."
Finally, after a few hours, dinner was ready. Inuyasha, in an uncharacteristically chivalrous gesture, offered to carry all the heavy pots and pans to the table. And then sat down at his place without a word.
"Grandpa," Sota whispered, taking note of this, "Is he okay?"
"Probably had a spat with Kagome," he answered breezily, as if such an incident was as common and insignificant as breaking a fingernail. Sota nodded at this possibility and simply shrugged. His sister's fights with Inuyasha were a dime a dozen, and they usually made up before the sun went down, anyway.
"Hey, sis! Guess what I learned in school today? Thanksgiving started out an American holiday, and was because this guy called Squanto helped the first settlers survive there, and they had a big feast as a thank you!"
Despite the fact that she already knew this--and in more detail than her brother--Kagome Higurashi never passed up a chance to play the 'indulgent big sister' card, and ruffled Sota's hair and gave a huge sisterly grin. "That's right, Sota! My little brother is so smart!"
And of course then Kagome & Company, as well as Hojo, who had recently arrived, had to talk about what they were thankful for next. It didn't help much that each one of them mentioned their family...repeatedly. The poor hanyou felt like sinking through the floorboards. It wasn't their fault, really. It was a good thing they loved their families so much, and had loving, supportive people that took care of them.
But it didn't make it hurt any less for Inuyasha. No matter how he tried, he couldn't remember so much as what his father looked like, or even his scent... And his mother. The mental image he kept of her was fading with every day that passed. It was the one drawback to being even partially demon. Just because you lived a really long time didn't mean all your memories did. And more often than not, the memories that stayed were the most painful...
He couldn't leave or ask to because it would make Kagome angry with him for spoiling the moment; he couldn't drown it out with something else because there was nothing else to focus on; he couldn't just cry because of his own pride. Plus, it'd spoil the moment. He was starting to feel like he would go insane if these proclamations of familial gratitude went on much longer.
Finally, however, the group stopped saying what they were thankful for...only to ask him.
"Inuyasha, what are you thankful for?" Kagome chirped.
Inuyasha tried to answer, to swallow the lump in his throat, and continue to act like he was perfectly fine, but being put on the spot just...got to him, and what came out was this: "I-I...I would like to be excused..." Flushing slightly, he rushed off, locking himself inside Kagome's room. He felt frustrated and slightly guilty for ultimately showing he was upset. Then there was the loneliness--no one had really noticed or paid attention to him all afternoon, up until asking him what he was grateful for.
And he didn't know why he felt that way; Kagome's family treated him as one of their own, and he was as close to Miroku and Sango and the others as one would be to their real family...he was supposed to be happy. He always felt so calm and peaceful around the young girl, so why did it hurt so much to be around her now?
The white-haired hanyou lay on the pink blankets, staring at the ceiling and wondering just what it was that was bothering him. The new moon was weeks away, everyone in the feudal era was all right, he hadn't really thought about Kikyo in months...Sesshomaru. The demon's image floated into his mind, and he started to piece together why he was feeling as depressed as he was. Sesshomaru was his half-brother, the last remnant of his family. And they hated each other. On a day all about family and appreciation...his half-brother was his only family.
Knock, knock.
"Come on, Inuyasha, open up. Please?"
"I don't want to talk right now, Kagome," he called quietly.
Knock, knock, knock. "Inuyasha." She knocked twice more. "Please, what's wrong? Open the door, Inuyasha." Another knock.
"Leave me alone. I don't want to talk right now." There was the sound of a sigh as Kagome's footsteps trailed away. The hanyou was left to his own depressing thoughts for another minute or two when another knock sounded. He was about to snap irritatedly at the knocker, assuming it to be Kagome again, when the knocker spoke.
"Hey, Inuyasha? Can I come in for a second? I need to get something from Kagome's room."
"...Did Kagome send you, Sota?" he asked, just loud enough to be heard through the door, "I don't really feel like talking right now. Oh, and tell her...I'm sorry for ruining the evening."
The young boy paused, and then answered. "No, Kagome didn't send me. I came myself. Just wanted to see if you're okay..."
The white-haired half-demon sighed and got to his feet. There was hardly any sound at all as he walked to the door and opened the door...and laid back on the bed without a word.
"I brought you back some dinner, Inuyasha. And some turkey." He chuckled slightly and smiled. The child really was charming when he wanted to be. "I heard about what happened with the dead turkey. Maybe you can bring it back to your friends on the other side of the well?"
Inuyasha simply nodded, and motioned for Sota to leave it on the dresser. "Not hungry," he mumbled.
Sota whimpered slightly, and decided there wasn't much more he could do here. "Well, if you're okay..." he answered softly, starting to walk out.
"Hey, Sota?" he began, fetching the food Sota had left him, as well as the turkey he had killed earlier, "Tell Kagome to come down the well once her holiday's over. I'm going back to the Feudal Era for now." Sota's face fell as the half-demon spoke. He looked up to Inuyasha, thinking of him almost like an older brother, and was always rather disappointed when the hanyou left.
"Ohh. Okay...G'bye, Inuyasha," he answered, waving.
"Later, Sota," came the reply, as Inuyasha opened Kagome's window and leaped out.
---
Inuyasha had never put much thought into why he could go through the well without Sacred Jewel Shards. It had just been one of those things he'd grown to accept, like Miroku being a womanizer, and Myoga ditching their group if there was danger afoot.
But now, with time on his hands to think, he really started to ponder it. There had to be a reason why he, and only he, could pass freely through the well without a jewel shard. He couldn't have shards inside him--Kagome would have known if he did. Perhaps it was because his affiliation with Kikyo, guardian of the original Jewel? No no, Kagome was her reincarnation, and even she needed shards to pass through. Or...it could be that it was because he was sealed to the tree of ages? It was possible, he supposed.
He didn't even know where he was going, really. It didn't take long for him to realize that he wasn't going in the direction of Kaede's village, but he didn't bother trying to figure where his legs were taking him. He could find the village again by scent, easily.
It turned out he was subconsciously following his nose all along, as he was suddenly pulled out of his reverie by the sound of voices.
"Lord Sesshomaru, what are we going to eat tonight?"
"Hush up, girl! You'll eat what Lord Sesshomaru gets you!"
"But, Master Jaken! I just wanted to know!"
"Whatever you would like, Rin," came the third voice, smooth as silk and strangely indulgent, considering he was speaking to a mortal.
"Yay! Can we have fish, Lord Sesshomaru? It's been a while since we've had fish!"
"Rin! Don't impose on our Lord--"
"Fine."
The girl cheered, swung her legs back and forth on Ah-Uhn, whom she was currently riding, Jaken having decided to follow Sesshomaru on foot.
Inuyasha froze as he suddenly saw the demon that had been occupying his thoughts, and tried quickly to hide himself from view. Of course it didn't work. He couldn't hide his scent, after all, or his aura.
And his elder half-brother's senses were as sharp as ever, as he soon turned in the direction Inuyasha was. "Inuyasha, you can come out now. I know you're there, and it's beneath even you to hide."
Inuyasha slowly left the trees and foliage he was concealing himself behind, and came out into the clearing. The elder demon had been about to make a bitingly sarcastic remark as his brother did so, but the sight of Inuyasha stymied him, and he was overcome by pure confusion. Of course, it didn't show on his face, which remained stoic as ever, but he couldn't help staring at what was slung over the half-demon's shoulder.
"Inuyasha...is that a--"
"Yeah, yeah, I know. It's a turkey--what of it?!"
The demon lord was slightly taken aback by his brother's tone. The challenge in the lesser half-breed's voice had always been evident to Sesshomaru, but it was rare to hear the genuine frustration and defiance in his voice, to this degree, at least. It was like the hanyou was daring him to make a sharp, smart-assed comment.
"...Nothing. Just...wondering," he answered quickly, only partially lying.
"Hmph. I'm sure."
"What are you doing here, Inuyasha? And why were you hiding?"
The younger half-demon suddenly looked EXTREMELY pissed. "I was just wandering around, and I happened to end up here! That's all! I hid because I didn't want to barge in on your conversations, but I forgot about my scent and aura." The vehemence in his voice was jarring enough that Sesshomaru refrained from saying something along the lines of "Too much time spent with those humans, half breed?" as he had intended to, but simply raised an eyebrow.
This caused Inuyasha to sigh slightly, and add in, "But...I guess maybe I might have been following your scent without realizing it, because..." he paused for a bit, trying to decide whether or not he ought to finish the sentence.
((NOT DONE))