Inuyasha=Rumiko Takahashi's
A/N: This is a one-shot fic. I'm trying to make the characters act like themselves, but if they act a little OCC…well just bear with me! =)
Mistletoe
It had started snowing. Bits of white fell all around, lightly sprinkling the forest with its beauty. Kagome looked up, gazing at the snowflakes. She smiled as one landed on the tip of her nose.
It's so pretty…maybe it'll be a white Chri— "SHOOT!" Kagome's thoughts stopped abruptly as she instantly stood up, causing Shippo to jump up in surprise. Frantically, Kagome ran toward her luggage, hurriedly throwing everything inside her pack.
"Kagome, what are you doing?" Sango asked, curiously peeking down at her frenzied friend. Kagome stopped throwing her clothes into the duffel bag long enough to look up.
"Oh yeah! Would it be okay if I left the Sengoku-jidai right now? I have something to attend to at home." At this, Inuyasha instantly leapt off his perch in the trees, smoothly landing in front of Kagome. Brushing himself off, he stood up, pointedly glaring at her.
"Of course not!" He snapped in an irritated tone. "We have shards to gather, and Naraku to find! How can you even think of your silly tests on squiggly little lines right now?"
Kagome's eyes flared up at his comment, and she clenched her fists tightly. "It's called GEOMETRY, Inuyasha! And for YOUR information, that's not the reason I'm going right now. Today's Christmas Eve in my time, and I promised Yuka and the others I'd go to their Christmas party," Kagome hissed. "And guess what? This time, I'm actually going!!!" Giving him one last angry glare, she turned, her feet ready to march away. But before they had time to move, there came a strong tugging at her sleeve.
Glancing back at her shoulder, Kagome saw Shippo hanging there comfortably, his eyes locked questioningly at her.
"Kagome, what's *Christmas*?" He asked, wrinkling his forehead as he pronounced the word slowly.
"Yes, what is this Christmas you speak of," Miroku added, curiosity written all over his face. Sango too, glanced at Kagome with a tilt of the head.
"We-ll…," Kagome started. She scratched her cheek, pondering on how she could put the holiday into easy understanding.
Describing every aspect would take forever and would probably just make her friends even more confused. The best way to summarize Christmas, she decided, was to put it in terms that appealed to their senses.
"Okay. So during Christmas, people decorate their houses with multi-colored ornaments, pretty glowing lights, and with wreaths of green and red. Friends and relatives visit, bringing presents with them. Then on Christmas Day, everyone eats a huge dinner with platterfuls of delicious, mouthwatering dishes–--"
"You mean like ramen?" interrupted Inuyasha, who had somehow scooted close enough to listen.
"No, not ramen—hey wait a minute! I thought you didn't care for any of this!" Kagome exclaimed, her eyes flashing.
"Feh. Of course not." Inuyasha turned his head up indignantly. "But there's nothing better to do than listen to your stupid story." He crossed his arms in a nonchalant pose, as if he was bored out of his mind.
"Ignore the idiot, Kagome," Miroku cut in, "Pray, continue on."
"Yeah. Tell us more about the food and stuff," nodded Shippo, licking his lips.
Kagome took a deep breath, hoping that it would calm her anger at Inuyasha, and continued on.
"As I was saying before I being so rudely interrupted (Inuyasha coughed there), there's all sorts of yummy deserts, and gorgeous appetizers. Besides that, families also put up a fir tree—they call it a Christmas tree—to put gifts under.
In my family, we have this tradition where we write our wishes on red slips of paper and then attach the slips to the tree. Supposedly Santa Claus—this legendary figure that brings presents to all, under the cover of darkness—will read the slips of paper, and make our wishes come true." Kagome paused for a second to catch her breath.
"Also," she began, then stopped, a faint blush appearing on her cheeks, "oh…nevermind."
"What??" The group screeched, unhappy at this sudden break in story time. Sango jumped up from her seat, impatiently hovering around Kagome.
"Tell us!!"
Kagome shook her head vigorously, her mouth set firm. Seeing her stubbornness, Shippo hopped into her lap, a clear plan in his mind.
"Pleeeeease?" He whined, wearing his best I'm-so-cute-and-irresistible look. "Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeease?"
It was irresistible all right. That, along with the intense stares on her forced Kagome to give in.
"Eh…well," she began, the blush once again reappearing, "there's a tradition with this type of shrub called the mistletoe; that if two people are under it, they have to um…kiss." Kagome finished off, rather flustered by the end of the sentence. She didn't dare look at Inuyasha.
"A mistletoe, eh?" A mischievous glint shone in Miroku's eyes. "Do you know where I might find it?" He directed Sango a wink while asking.
"Unfortunately for you, and luckily for the ladies, mistletoe don't grow around here," Kagome said with a wide smile, "However, I think I have a sample of mistletoe here with me, so I can show you how it looks."
Saying, she carefully reached insider her bulging bag to produce a small green object with berries attached. Her companions perused it, surprised that such a small thing could be an agent of smooching.
"Hmm," Sango rubbed her chin thoughtfully, while an evil smile danced on her lips. "Kagome, is there some specific reason you have this sprig of mistletoe here with you?" The smirk widened. "Perhaps—perhaps you are hoping to be kissed by a special someone?"
Kagome's cheeks burned at that last question, and she waved her hands frantically, looking as if she was ready to die. "No, no!! You've got it all wrong! I—"
Her sentence was suspended by a pair of arms encircling her waist quite strongly.
"My dear Kagome," rumbled a certain perverted houshi's voice, "you need not resort to such tactics to ensnare my heart—" Before he could finish his little speech, he was interrupted by a few smacks, courteous of two black-haired females. It was ensued with Sango chocking her Hiraikotsu at him.
Inuyasha looked on at them with a disdainful air. "Keh. Look at you fools. Making idiots of yourselves over stupid things like plants and kisses."
Stupid? Kagome felt that last remark strike her deep. Her head pounded—both in anger and in disappointment. No! She wasn't disappointed. She had never believed he would care much anyways, though she had been hoping…hoping that he would reveal some of that caring, interested nature of his. But that would never happen, Kagome thought bitterly. She might as well leave; he didn't seem to want her here too much anyways.
"I'm going," she said suddenly, her voice low, barely masking the frustration in her voice.
Forgetting their argument, Sango and Miroku turned to stare at her as she walked past them, her heels making soft thumps in the snow. As she disappeared into the forest, Sango and Miroku whipped around to glare at the white haired hanyou.
"Inu—yaaaaasha! Look what you've done!"
Inuyasha sniffed irately. "Hmph. I didn't do nothing." His friends gaped at him in disbelief, their level of exasperation rising with each passing second. "Y-you…you…"
Nevertheless, it took quite a few bumps until Inuyasha was willing to compromise.
"Now don't you dare come back until Kagome does, you hear?" Shippo shouted after Inuyasha's retreating figure.
"Aw, shuddap, you brat!" came the response. Miroku had to restrain the furious kitsune as it struggled from chasing after the half-breed.
--
"STUPID STUPID STUPID!" grumbled an annoyed hanyou, taking his wrath out on a misfortunate rock. "Why do I have to apologize? Dumb wench shouldn't get so angry over some small remark." Inuyasha angrily muttered some incomprehensible phrases in his mind while kicking a stone out of his path.
Seriously. Why did he have to be stuck here searching for that idiot girl? And it was chicken soup tonight too. Miroku and Shippo would probably steal all his shares. The thought made Inuyasha growl irritably.
Ah well. Might as well search for that dang partner of his now. Inuyasha crouched down on all fours, intently sniffing the ground. And sniffled again. His forehead wrinkled in confusion. Why wasn't there any trace of her scent? His eyes narrowed, then widened.
Aw crap. SNOW. That blasted white fluffy thing! It covered up her scent with its wet smell of nothingness. Inuyasha mentally smacked his head. Now how was he going to find that girl? It'd be almost impossible to find her tracks.
"Kagome!" He shouted. "Kagome??" Shouting was the only thing he could do now. He hoped that she hadn't gone too far off. Though he seriously doubted that she could have gotten there anyways, seeing as the snow raining down overhead had already risen ankle-high.
Inuyasha trudged heavily through the snow as the harsh wind blew at his face while the snow encircled him.
Dammit. It was getting harder and harder to walk, and the weather had transformed the familiar forest into a foreign land of ice and snow. He could barely recognize the place, with all the blankets of snow heaped all around, icicles hanging from branches, and the white flurries that were throwing themselves at him.
Inuyasha felt an uneasiness gnaw at him. No doubt Kagome was also lost in the forest, surrounded by this howling wind and seemingly unfamiliar place. Without meaning to, his mind conjured up images of the girl stumbling around, shivering in her skimpy outfit that was completely inadequate for this type of environment. Or another image, of her accidentally staggering upon some youkai's shelter, her eyes wide while the demon opened its mou—
Okay. THAT was enough. He needed to find her NOW. Inuyasha cupped his hands around his mouth. "KAGOME? DO YOU HEAR ME??" He strained his ears, trying to catch some small sound in the midst of the howling wind.
"KAGOME! KAGOME!!" Still no answer. Frantically, Inuyasha began to run around in all directions, ignoring the now snow-turned-hail that was showering down on him.
"DAMMIT! Stupid girl, ANSWER!" Inuyasha felt his throat getting hoarse with each shout, and his anxiety grow with each silence. That girl was going to freeze if he didn't find her soon.
He was right about to give up and throw himself against a tree trunk when he saw a flash of green and white and heard the swish of clothing. Or at least, he thought he did. It might've just been the wind that was playing tricks on him.
"Kagome?" He asked roughly. "Is that you?" He staggered closer to where the noise had been. "Kagome?"
He was rewarded with a small ripping sound of a skirt against a shrub. Quickly, Inuyasha dashed forward and grabbed onto the figure, refusing to let it disappear. He yanked the person towards him, and was assured with the sight of the familiar green and white uniform that it was indeed, Kagome.
"Thank heavens you're all right."
She didn't say anything, but instead, struggled with his grip, trying to loosen it, while her face was hidden in shadows. "Mmph! Let go of me!" Her voice was between a shout and a whisper, so low he could barely hear it.
"What, and let you freeze to death out there? Miroku and Sango would have a fit!"
With a burst of force, Kagome wrenched his hand off, and started to run from him. Inuyasha looked at her in shock, his pride slightly bruised. But worry overtook him, and he ran after her, this time, grabbing her wrist more forcefully. She made several animal-like noises of protests, trying to get away.
Anger took Inuyasha, and he pulled her so that she was facing him.
"What the hell do you think you're doing? Why do you think I'm here? To become a frozen corpse?"
Kagome suddenly lifted her head so that their faces were a mere inch away. "You selfish jerk! You're only here because they told you to!" she shouted angrily.
Inuyasha was about to retort back when he noticed something wet sliding down Kagome's cheeks. She was crying. He felt a flash of guilt go through him as he took in her pale coloring and blue tinge. It was his fault she was here, freezing in the cold instead of being home with her friends; his fault she wasn't happy and warm.
"Look, Kagome," he began, his gruff voice sounding unusually gentle.
"Just GO AWAY!" She turned her head around so that her back was facing her. "Go away!" She tried to lurch away to the side, but his grip held firm. Just then, a cold gust of wind blew at them, throwing even more snow flurries at them. Kagome crouched down, her body trembling with each gust.
Now Inuyasha felt even worse than he did before. "Kagome, you're shivering!" He tried to get her to look at him, but she stubbornly stared away. "Here, if you won't listen to me, at least take my fire-rat jacket." Inuyasha pulled it off with his free arm and threw it at her.
She still didn't move. Inuyasha felt himself grow angry again, anger mixed with extreme worry. She was going to freeze if she didn't cover herself up, he thought with distress. The thought of her blue and dead made his chest go tight.
"Look," Inuyasha knelt down beside Kagome, turning her face toward his, "I'm sorry, okay? I didn't mean to hurt your feelings." He let go of her wrist, his face pleading with her. She looked at him blankly, her eyes flickering at him with an unreadable emotion.
"Truly sorry?" Her eyes continued looking at him. Inuyasha shifted uncomfortably, not liking how her eyes were making him feel.
"Yeah."
Inuyasha heard a small gasp from her. Oh gods, don't tell me she's dying! He frenetically whipped his head around and was met by a pair of brown eyes shining up at him. It was a complete change from the blank cold look directed at him before.
"Inuyasha," she said softly, "…thank you." Her voice sounded breathless and airy.
A strange feeling drifted through Inuyasha and he began to feel slightly lightheaded. He watched her eyes brim with tears, and her lips curve into a small smile. She stared at him for a few seconds, when suddenly her body staggered forward, falling into Inuyasha's lap. Surprised by this, a tinge of red drifted over Inuyasha's face.
He strained his head to look at her. "Um.. Kago— " Inuyasha stopped, silenced by the sight of her closed eyes and the rhythm of her soft breathing.
She was asleep?
Inuyasha had a strong urge to smile. Looking down at her peaceful face, he felt like he was in some stranger's body, with a stranger's emotions. But, this was a strange day with strange events happening. Wonderful strange events.
Inuyasha raised his eyebrows as if amused at his thoughts, and threw his fire-rat jacket over the Kagome. His eyes traced over her sleeping face, and as if possessed, Inuyasha felt his finger trace Kagome's cheek gently, until suddenly, the corner of his eye caught a slip of bright red.
Curious, he carefully removed Kagome from his lap and placed her gently onto the floor, using a pile of leaves and branches to shed her from the snow. Then, softly, he crept over to where he had seen the flash of color and discovered a small piece of red paper folded into a small wad, as if the owner had crumpled it in anger or agitation.
Inuyasha sniffed the wad of paper all around. That scent—it smelled familiar, with the fragrance of strawberries and flowers. Eh? Wasn't Kagome the one smelling like flowers and strawberries?
Then it hit him. The slip had belonged to Kagome…he remembered her saying how her family wrote wishes on slips of red paper for that guy called Sandy Claws? No, that name didn't sound right. But never mind, Inuyasha thought, the point is, Kagome wrote her wish on that piece of paper. But why was it crumpled up so badly? And what was inside? Inuyasha felt strongly compelled to read what was in it.
His right hand edged toward it, inching closer and closer. "NO!" Inuyasha smacked his right hand with his left.
"Bad hand! Bad hand!" But he couldn't help but look at the paper longingly. And look some more. Inuyasha, it seemed to call seductively, Open meeeeeee…
"To hell with it all!" Inuyasha grabbed the crumpled wad and started opening it. "I can't stand it anymore! She can SIT me all she wants!" Trying not to tear the delicate sheet in his impatience, Inuyasha carefully unraveled the wrinkled sheet, and quickly read what was inside.
His eyes widened, and his mouth dropped open. The paper fluttered to the snow covered ground, forgotten. A dazed look on his face, Inuyasha fell back against the trunk of a tree, his eyes blankly perusing the forest around him.
"I can't…I won't…" he said, muttering to himself. Plus, I don't have it with me. As if to contradict him, the wind suddenly began to blow again, sending a small green object under Kagome's hand over to Inuyasha's foot.
"Eh?" Inuyasha felt something prick his right foot, and snapping out of his trance-like mood, bent over to look. "What the---!!" Inuyasha took a step back, his eyes registering confusion.
"How did that thing get—no, what is wrong with this picture???" He stamped his foot against the ground. Only the wind and snow answered, now reduced to only light sprinkles of white dancing against his face.
With a sigh, Inuyasha shifted his gaze to Kagome's face. She seemed so content, sleeping there. If he were the romantic type, he might even say she was…beautiful.
Would it really hurt to just grant it? I mean, it IS partly my fault that she's stuck here without any of that glamorous food and stuff… I suppose then….but if she smacks me, it is TOTALLY not my fault!!!
He inched forward, his heart beating profoundly as he picked up the small shrub and held it over their heads. He bit his lip nervously.
Well here goes nothing…
Taking a deep breath, Inuyasha bent down and kissed her.
Well uh..Kagome…just wishing you a Merry Christmas…Hey! This isn't half so bad!
--The End--
A/N: Well, I finished! Whopee!!!!! ^^ I suppose it's obvious what Kagome's wish was, eh?
Anyways, Merry Christmas to all!
The Mediocre One