Summary: It's Kagome's birthday and a certain someone seems to not remember what a special day it is.
A/N: Sorry it's not very good, but hopefully you'll find some enjoyment in reading, it maybe?
An Anniversary
The birds were quiet in the Forest of Inuyasha, refusing to sing because of the heavy atmosphere in the meadow housing an ancient dry well and the shouts that could be heard there. The freshly bloomed flowers of spring seemed to tremble under the force of two wills clashing and twisting in a battle as old as the quest for Shikon no Tama shards - that meant almost a full year.
"No!" growled Inuyasha. "You're staying here, wench!"
"I'm going home! I waited for this party for two months and all my friends and family there spent weeks putting it together!"
"We have stuff to do!"
"No, we don't, as long as Sango's wound isn't healed we're just sitting here. I will come back tomorrow," Kagome rested her hands on her hips, stomping her foot to accent the finality of her statement. She fixed the hanyou with a glare, not afraid of his growling and intense yellow eyes.
"No! You promised to stay!"
"I did, but I need some time with people on the other side of the well. They're my family and friends, you know!"
"Fuck them, you're staying here today. You can go to visit later, Sango's not going to be able to travel for two next weeks!"
"But I need to go today!"
Finally, the irate girl uttered the word of subjugation, repeated her promise of returning the next day and left the hanyou on the ground, spitting out grass.
"Stupid Inuyasha," Kagome muttered to herself while climbing up the ladder standing in the well on the modern side of the time portal. "He didn't even wish me anything."
She had told all her friends about her birthday a couple of days before and, despite the fact the celebration of it was foreign for them, all of them had wished her good luck and happiness today. Then she had went to the well, where she had encountered the hanyou, who had been loud and really unhappy about her going back home to spend this day with her family and friends. She had promised her feudal time friends a piece of her birthday cake the next day, but - to her surprise - the promise did nothing to appease the stubborn hanyou. 'He probably forgot it's my birthday,' Kagome thought.
"And there I was, almost inviting him to come over, since he's the only one of them who could go through the well," she sighed. Maybe it was for the best, she didn't have to worry any secrets would get spilled around her modern time friends. And after this subjugation Inuyasha would sulk for hours, so there was no worry he'd come and destroy the party any time soon.
Still, Kagome felt bad she had to utilize the command and make him stay away. She would have loved to have him at the party and not angry at her for face planting him. She wanted Inuyasha to celebrate her sixteenth birthday with her, even if he wasn't familiar with the celebration.
"I'll bring him a double-sized piece of cake as a peace offering," she promised herself while walking to her house. "Food always helps to tame him."
She smiled softly at this thought, Inuyasha was such a glutton. She supposed it wasn't surprising, growing on his own and fighting for every meal, it was natural for him to eat fast and as much as he could stuff down his throat. Still, after a year of traveling with her and having normal friends one could think he'd slow down and learn some manners.
"I'll have a fun time with my friends and family here, then we can have cake tomorrow in the past," Kagome coached herself. "And no thinking about Inuyasha."
Decision made, the girl went upstairs to prepare for the party.
.
The sun barely set, still painting the western sky with oranges, pinks and yellows. For a moment Kagome just sat on the lip of the well to admire the beauty of the colors, wondering how the pink changing into purple resembled the constant changes of the light of the sacred jewel.
She picked her box and started to walk towards the village, wondering why there was no one coming to yell at her. Usually, Inuyasha or Shippou would be near the well, but today the two youkai boys were nowhere to be seen. She supposed it was the supper time and that everyone was at Kaede's.
The party had been fun, she had spent the whole afternoon with Yuka, Eri, Ayumi, Hojo and some other classmates, scarcely thinking about things that weren't related to her modern life. Still, it had took some will-power to keep from wondering what Inuyasha and the rest had been doing. As long as she had some distraction provided by her classmates she was successful.
Finally, when her friends had left the house and all the dirty dishes had went to the dishwasher, Kagome couldn't find a good distraction. So, she came to the past early... That is- late.
As the young miko walked between the growing shadows she saw the village settled in the valley, encircled by fields and gardens. It looked so serene that she had to smile. During this year she had been here more often that she had been in majority of the places in Tokyo she used to visit before her fifteenth birthday. Kagome was more a part of this place than her old world and she often thought that the only reasons she was crossing the time portal were her family and friends. It was in the past that Kagome had found the extent of her will-power, where she had found companionship in battle and love.
She was about to enter Kaede's hut when she heard her friends speak her name.
"Shippou, wasn't this for Kagome?" asked Miroku in a mildly scolding tone.
"Yeah, but she won't be back for some time, they'll go bad if no one eats them," the kit said nonchalantly.
"I guess you're right," the monk sighed. "I saw the hole Inuyasha got himself into today, I suppose Lady Kagome won't be returning soon."
"Still, I think you shouldn't eat her gift," Sango's voice was stern when she spoke 'Kagome's gift?' Kagome wondered, frozen just outside the hut. "At least don't throw away the box, Inuyasha put a lot of work in making it."
"I don't see why Kagome would want it, it's ugly," Kagome practically could hear the little fox pouting. "Even Inuyasha thinks that, I heard him say that it's dumb and worthless when he left it under the Sacred Tree."
"He was probably angry because Lady Kagome went home today." Miroku guessed. "You know, to celebrate her birthday."
"But when he gets past his sulking he'll want it back," Sango was adamant in her beliefs. "And he'll be angry you took it and ate all the peaches. He'll hit you."
"And I'll tell Kagome he's mean to me, so she sits him."
"We'll tell her you stole it first," Sango replied, annoyed. "She won't approve of it."
"I won't," Kagome finally remembered to move and entered the hut. She saw her three friends sitting close to the edge of the raised floor and Kaede deeper in the room, stirring something in a pot. The old miko raised her eye to look at her and smiled.
"Welcome back, child," she said. Meanwhile Shippou tried to hide a wooden box behind his back, but Sango reached behind his bushy tail and pulled it into the light. Miroku picked up the matching lid and closed the box before the youkai exterminator put the box on her other side, away from grabby hands of the little thief.
"Hello, Kagome, you're back!" she smiled brightly.
"Yeah, I couldn't wait to share my birthday cake with my friends on this side of the well," Kagome put the box on the floor and looked at Shippou. "I overheard you were misbehaving, Shippou, I heard you stole something belonging to Inuyasha. I think I'll give your slice of the cake to him,"
"What? No!" the fox exclaimed and jumped to her side and grabbed her sleeve. "Kagome, you can't give my cake away! He didn't want the stupid box! Picking up stuff people don't want to isn't stealing!"
"Hm..." the young miko looked at the frantic expression on Shippou's face and then looked up at Sango and Miroku. "What happened?"
Sango looked at her best female friend and gestured for Miroku to answer.
"When you went to your time, Lady Kagome, the lovely Sango and I went to check on Inuyasha," the monk placed his hands on his knees, his voice polite as always. "We found him by the Goshinboku, sulking and brushing grass out of his hair. He didn't want to tell us what exactly had happened, but we recreated the passing of events basing on the clues presented to us."
"Yeah, I sat him, because he didn't want to let me go to my birthday party, the jerk," Kagome muttered the last part under her nose. Sango gave a small nod.
"We tried to coax him into coming back here with us, but our dog-eared friend adamantly refused," Miroku shook his head.
"And he told us to go to hell when we suggested we stay out in the forest with him," Sango added. Shippou kept quiet, sniffing the cardboard box in front of Kagome.
"He's just grumpy because he lost an argument," the young miko said. She wasn't pleased he preferred to be alone than with his friends, but he was a person who kept more to himself than any other person she knew. Sometimes it couldn't be helped, he had to sit alone and sulk for a while. "He'll be back to normal tomorrow."
"We retreated here and young Shippou joined us just recently, carrying the box you can see here," Miroku gestured to the wooden box, somehow managing to put his hand behind Sango after everyone looked to the aforementioned item. Sango gasped and slapped the monk. "Ah, you're so cruel, dear Sango, I merely wished to reach for the box and my cursed hand seemed to slip..."
"I swear, one day I'll knock your teeth out, monk! Focus," Sango growled before picking the item and handing it to Kagome. "It's a gift from Inuyasha to you, Kagome."
Kagome smiled as she took the box and admired it. It was made from cherry wood, with a simple carving of squares and triangles intertwining on its sides and lid. It even had her name etched in the lid. After further inspection she found a half a dozen peaches inside, with room for several more. When she glanced at Shippou he gave her a sheepish grin and stopped sniffing around the cardboard box containing he birthday cake.
"So he remembered about my birthday..." she said, softly, realizing now how sad it had been to her that he hadn't acknowledged her special day. She wasn't one who demanded gifts, but she really liked the feelings behind even the smallest of presents.
"I believe it's not a birthday gift, child," Kaede spoke. When Kagome looked at her, puzzled, the old miko gestured towards the box. "In this parts we have a custom of giving good luck fruits like peaches at anniversaries."
Kagome frowned at the six peaches, filling up a half of the space in the box, trying to come up with why would Inuyasha want to give her them. "An anniversary...?"
"I believe it's an anniversary of the hanyou Inuyasha being released from his seal and meeting his first real friend," Kaede said softly.
"And getting his beads," Miroku added with a smile.
Kagome realized they were right, it was on her birthday she had been dragged down the well, had met and had set free Inuyasha just to bind him with the enchanted necklace.
It was the anniversary of their meeting.
And she had left him alone.
Kagome was perfectly motionless for a second before she jumped to her feet and ran out of the hut, followed by calls of her friends.
"Hopefully they'll work things through," Miroku relaxed and Sango smiled with a small nod.
Shippou glanced at the pair, looking in the fire, at the old miko focused on the stew, then at the cardboard box smelling so deliciously. He reached a little hand...
"Hey!" he jumped and looked back to see Kagome, panting, in the doorway, clutching the wooden container to her chest. "Sango, keep the fox out of the box!"
"Sure thing," the exterminator smiled and picked Shippou by the tail.
"Hey!" Shippou exclaimed. "I was just..."
He sighed when he was deposited in Miroku's lap.
.
Kagome ran up the path, grateful for the faint light of the moon and the stars, because it was pretty dark outside. This time she didn't notice the beauty of the serene scenery, she was way too busy for that.
"Idiot, idiot, idiot," she berated herself. Now it all made sense - he had insisted for her to stay, not once had he mentioned the quest. And he had been so insistent on her staying on this side of the well only today, he did say she could visit the future any day while Sango was recovering.
Obviously, he had wanted to spend their anniversary together and all she had done was to slam his face in the ground for it. Of course, he had been to blame too, not voicing his desires like a normal person should. But on the second thought - Inuyasha was hardly a normal person and communication problems seemed to be his thing.
There was no sign of Inuyasha around the Sacred Tree. Kagome looked at the dark shape of the tree looming over the meadow, then focused her spiritual energy, trying to find the hanyou. He had to be around somewhere...
It turned out she was right, the hanyou was nearby. Following the feel of his youki Kagome walked through the forest until she reached a rocky path, that led to a bridge over the river that ran near the village. The path would lead to the village, but it was rarely used, since there was a shorter way to reach it.
Inuyasha was sitting on a rocky slope leading to the wooden bridge hanging over the flowing water. From his spot he had a nice view of the forest basked in the moonlight and the distant fields, Kagome knew it because she had sat there a couple of times herself.
His ears twitched when she approached him, but he didn't look her way, facing away from her.
"Inuyasha?" she called to him softly.
"What do you want? Shouldn't you be on your stupid party?" The hanyou obviously wasn't in a good mood. Kagome walked closer and sat beside him, placing his gift on her lap.
"The party is over. Besides, it was a bit boring anyway, a bunch of teens sitting around and talking about stuff that mostly don't interest me anymore," she said honestly. It was a bit saddening, but she didn't really have many common topics with her school friends to talk about. "I came back to spend time with my friends from this era."
"Keh, so why aren't you in the hut with the rest?" Kagome almost hit the boy on the head for his words. She glared at him, but he was still not looking her way, so she dropped her gaze to the box in her lap. She traced a triangle with a fingertip. 'You weren't there. '
"I came to thank you for your gift," she said, softly. She didn't notice that the boy beside her stole a glance her way. "And bring you back, I brought cake. I'm sorry I sat you earlier, Inuyasha, I didn't mean to hurt you."
"Feh, as if you could hurt me, you weak human," he snorted, but somehow it sounded much less grumpy and annoyed. Kagome dared to look up and smile shyly at him, not minding the insult. She knew she was forgiven for the sitting.
"I didn't know you made this for me, that you remwmbered," she said, directing his attention to the box she held in her lap. The boy beside her blushed faintly and looked away. "Kaede said it's an anniversary gift since we're friends for a year now. I really appreciate that you made it."
"It's nothing."
"There's only one problem." Kagome almost giggled when she saw the look of confused worry on his face.
"What is it? You don't like it?" he asked, clearly defensive.
"No, I love it! It's jut... I don't have anything for you for our anniversary," she lowered her head in shame, again tracing the shapes carved on the box "Last year I got to meet you and this year you gave me this. And I didn't even let you come to the party... I'm a terrible friend."
"Stupid wench," he muttered after a minute, his voice oddly affectionate. "You don't hafta give me any shit. You freed me from the seal and you're sticking around."
"Still..." Kagome felt a swarm of fuzzy butterflies rise and swirl in her belly, her cheeks flaming at the sound of his words. Somehow, Inuyasha managed to be sweet and rude at the same time. He looked thoughtfully at the starry sky above them.
"You could try to use the beads less. And let me kick the wimpy wolf's ass. Or bring more ramen and less books... Oi!" Kagome started to laugh at his suggestions.
"I will try not to sit you so much, but you have to be less rude and control yourself around Kouga, he's our friend. And you know I have to study, you addicted to noodles puppy," she teased him, getting a 'keh!' out of him. "But I can share with you."
She lifted the lid of her peach box and Inuyasha looked in.
"I see the fox got to it."
"You left it unprotected under the Sacred Tree," she pointed out. "Besides, there's still enough to share."
"I thought you forgot about our anniversary," the words were merely a whisper and the speaking boy was looking away, trying to hide the emotions on his face.
"Inuyasha," the girl breathed out and shyly took his hand in hers. "Meeting and befriending you was my best birthday gift ever."
The pair of yellow, intense eyes looked at her with a mixture of awe, disbelief, shock and... was it affection? Losing all her courage Kagome quickly put a peach in his hand before letting go of it. She picked up her own fruit and bit into it to hide her flushing face. Inuyasha looked like he wanted to say something, but then he closed his mouth and started eating.
They watched in silence the stars shining over the Kaede's village, Kagome carefully inched closer and leaned against the hanyou's side, the boy didn't shying away from her and even resting his cheek against the top of her head for a while.