A/N: So I've always liked how this group had sort of a familial feeling about them, and I wanted to write a story showing the family ties between the characters. There aren't enough fics out there appreciating how the inu-tachi are kind of like siblings, and to be honest, the one's where they start shipping the wrong people just freak me out (no offense, it's just not my thing).
So here's Togetherness, which will be a collection of one-shots centered around family ties, and sometimes romance, between the Inuyasha characters.
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, the show, characters, etc.
The sky was a placid, silvery color. It looked like it covered in flat clouds, and at the same time, it looked clear. No matter which it was, it cast a grey and depressing shadow over all of feudal Japan.
Between autumn and winter, it was colder than usual. It was slightly windy, but without the sun out that day, it was colder than it should have been. Wildlife had already scampered for warmer shelter, but youkai, though a lesser number, still roamed the forest surrounding Kaede's village, though they left it in peace.
Sango blew out lightly— she saw her breath materialize in front of her before it evanesced into the surrounding air. She wasn't cold for some reason— maybe it was the two little girls snuggling up against her front proving her warmth.
Her two twin daughters— her first children. Almost a year old, and the most precious things in her life, besides Miroku...
They were both asleep, wrapped in thick blankets and one in each of Sango's arms. Her strength from years of taijiya training was incredibly helpful when it came to her children— she doubted that they would become heavy for her anytime soon.
She looked down at their faces. Miroku insisted that they looked more like her, and she had to agree. They had her face shape and hair, but she could see her husband in their nose and eyes. Miroku had laughed, saying it would have been funny if one twin looked like him while the other looked like her.
When sleeping, they looked so peaceful that Sango couldn't help but feel a swell of love for them. It squeezed her heart to know that Kagome would have loved to see and hold her children.
Oh Kagome...
It had been roughly a year since her closest friend had been pulled back into her own time. Her disappearance took heavy tolls on everyone, especially Inuyasha, The village wasn't as bright as it used to be, and smiles that they wore never did quite reach their eyes anymore.
Inuyasha mainly moped around the village, his sole duty protecting the village from youkai attacks. He killed almost emotionlessly, several steps down from when he passionately cut down demons for Kagome and theirs sake. He hardly even touched Tetsusaiga, instead opting for his flaws and fangs when handling the attacks.
Sango inhaled and exhaled again, looking out into the forest, her eyes slowly losing focus as she fell into deep thought. Miroku had left the village the day prior reluctantly to perform an emergency exorcism on the neighboring village. He had insisted on staying with his wife and precious children, but they had managed to convince him to go earn his keep while Inuyasha protected the village.
Speaking of which, where was he? Sango glanced around, furrowing her brows when she didn't see him. She wasn't worried, she could still hold her own against any attacking youkai, but she hadn't even done so while with her children.
"Sango?" She nearly jumped out of her skin when said hanyou appeared behind her somehow, approaching her. "What the hell are you doing out here?"
She glared at him and looked pointedly at her children. He raised an eyebrow. "They're asleep, who cares?"
"I do!" She hissed out, but Inuyasha ignored her.
"You should be inside, it's cold out. I don't need Miroku exorcising me when he comes back to see you and your kids ill," Inuyasha admonished.
Sango smiled. After a few years with Inuyasha, she could read his words easily— the way he acted like he didn't care when he really did.
"Thank you, Inuyasha, but I'm fine, really." She returned her gaze to the forest.
"Are you waiting for Miroku or something? He's not coming back for at least another few days, you know that, right?" She glared at him. "Of course I know that! It's just..."
"You miss him, right? Keh, stupid human emotions..." Inuyasha grumbled.
Sango flushed angrily. "What, like you haven't missed Ka—" If she could, she would have slapped a hand over her mouth. What was she thinking, bringing her up?
Inuyasha stiffened. "Look, there's a huge fucking difference between—"
"I know, I know!" Sango said hurriedly. "I-I didn't mean it, it just slipped out, and I'm sorry. Really."
"..." Inuyasha said nothing, but stood next to her, looking out into his forest.
"You're just lucky to know he'll return."
Sango swallowed hard. "You don't know that Kagome won't..."
"I know," he said curtly. "But you can be certain about Miroku, at least."
She looked down at her sleeping daughters. "I'm sorry Inuyasha, I really didn't mean to say that."
He huffed, before replying in a quieter tone. "Don't worry about it."
They stayed silent for a while before Sango broke the silence again. "Where's Shippo at?"
"Training again. Kohaku?"
"Training, again," Sango replied with a small smile on her face.
It was silent again before Inuyasha spoke up. "How long 'ya gonna stay out here? You can't just be waiting for him 'til he comes back."
Sango bit her lip before looking up at him and responding with, "It's not like you don't do it, either, Inuyasha."
His eyes widened and he looked down at her. "What?"
She averted her eyes. "I see you, sometimes. You take off to the well every now and then, every three days, actually."
Inuyasha's eyebrows furrowed. "You've been fucking spying on me?" He demanded incredulously.
"Not really. You're just more obvious than you think you are,"
He took a deep long breath before focusing his full attention on her. "You haven't told anyone, have you? 'Cause I swear—"
"No, because I'm pretty sure they already know. Haven't you notice no one ever asks or goes with you when you leave?" Inuyasha sputtered, and then 'keh'ed defiantly before jerking his nose towards the direction the sun would be visible in if it wasn't so cloudy.
Sango awkwardly shifted her children. "Don't worry, Inuyasha. Kami smiles upon loving spirits such as yourself. I can guarantee you'll see her again," Sango said softly. With her arms full, she managed to walk over to him and awkwardly put her head on his arm as a sort of friendly gesture. She could almost feel the boy's sorrow for his lost love, and was upset she couldn't provide more than a sisterly warmth for him.
Since she wasn't looking at his face, she completely missed his brilliant blush and flushed expression. He blinked furiously and his eyes shifted from side to side as if looking for a way out of the touching gesture.
He patted Sango's head a little hesitantly in his own way of returning the favor.
"You know, Inuyasha, at times you remind me of my father."
Inuyasha's eyes widened, and his lips parted in surprise. "Wh-what do you mean?"
"You two have things in common. Like how you're both so headstrong and prideful. My father never did let anyone insult him and get away with it." Sango giggled and let more of her head's weight drop onto Inuyasha's shoulder. "He was good at what he did, just like you are. He had a big heart and always protected our village, just like you protect us now."
Inuyasha grew more and more awkward-feeling with every indirect compliment Sango was pushing towards him. "I'm not your father, Sango." He almost flinched, instantly realizing how cold and harsh the words sounded at first, but was slightly relieved when Sango only laughed a little.
"Of course you're not Inuyasha. No one can ever replace my father. Let's just call you the big brother I never had."
"... Sango, I—"
"Oh, did I mention? My father... he used to hit Kohaku on the head when he did something bad like you do to Shippo. It's actually kind of weird how you uncannily resemble him sometimes."
He flinched guiltily and looked down. "I, um, I'm sorry..."
She withdrew her head from his warm body and looked at him a little incredulously. "What on earth for? Thank you, Inuyasha, for being a part of my family."
He heard her sniffle a little in response to the chilly air, most likely getting a runny nose.
He silently thanked the lord for the excuse to not watch the girl blather more and eventually shed tears. Inuyasha yanked off his outer haori, draping it over Sango's head and shoulders and managing to tie the sleeves around her and her children with the care of an older brother. Sango watched him wide eyed as he expertly tied the red garment around her and her children. When he finished, he tugged the part of the haori over her head a little more over her hairline, like a hood.
"Don't stay out too long, all right?" Inuyasha ruffled the top of her head before he turned and walked back towards Kaede's hut.
She smiled, feeling happier than she had been since Miroku left. "Don't worry, Inuyasha, I'll be right in," she called after his retreating figure.
She looked back towards the horizon, her spirit lighter than it was before.
A/N: I hope I did an okay job on this. This idea, along with some others, have been floating around for a while and I was excited to finally write this one out. If you like stories like this, feel free to PM me so I can link you to other great ones on this website!
Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!