Happy 4th of July everyone! Even though I know it is late, I wrote this fanfic for the holiday. Obviously, Japan does not celebrate the 4th of July (duuuh, why would they?), so I simply made this one shot about my favorite thing to do with the 4th: fireworks! So, I hope you enjoy my newest story!
Fireworks
"And when they kissed, it was like fireworks," Kagome read in a dreamy voice from one of her romance books. "And they all lived happily ever after." Kagome and Sango shared a dreamy sigh as Kagome carefully closed the thick blue book. Shippo gently jumped on the miko's shoulder, curiosity and wonder evident in his emerald eyes.
"Kagome…what is a 'firework?'" Kagome grinned at his answer and gently stroked his head.
"Well, Shippo, you see…A firework is…well, it is..." Kagome stumbled upon her words, not quite sure of how to describe something so modern to the group. One glance told her that everyone was staring at her, waiting for a response. "Fireworks are colorful lights in the sky that people watch and say 'ooooo' and 'aaaah' to. They are really beautiful." She decided that this was a worthy answer.
But the look of confusion in Shippo's eyes grew even more evident. Kagome internally sighed. She loved the young fox demon dearly, but his child-like wonder was a little too much sometimes.
"So…why did the princess say that it was like fireworks when she kissed the prince? Was she seeing pretty colors?" Shippo crawled into Kagome's lap, begging all of her attention. Inuyasha scoffed from up in his tree while Miroku and Sango waiting patiently for Kagome's answer. They might not have asked me, but they are just as curious as Shippo. She smiled to herself.
"No, Shippo, not exactly. It's a saying. When a girl kisses a boy and sees fireworks, that means that…well, that she feels sparks. You see, fireworks are really balls of fire, and when you kiss someone you really love and care about, it feels like your whole world is on fire and exploding and…perfect. It feels like fireworks," Kagome hastily explained, trying not to think of the time she had kissed Inuyasha in Kaguya's castle. It felt like fireworks to her then. From the light blush coating both Sango and Miroku's faces, she could tell that they too were thinking of the first time they had shared a kiss.
"I don't get it," Shippo complained. Kagome offered him a warm smile and Inuyasha scoffed once more.
"That's because it's all a load, Shippo," Inuyasha sneered before Kagome could respond. The familiar fury growing in Kagome's eyes told everyone what was going to happen next. Shippo smiled mischievously.
"Sit boy," Kagome said calmly. Inuyasha fell down from his perch in the tree with a yelp as he slammed into the ground. "What would you know about it?" The miko turned her glare on the hanyou crater behind her as her calm voice turned into a shout.
Inuyasha waited impatiently for the spell to wear off before giving the teenager a piece of his mind. The nerve of that woman! When the pull of the rosary no longer held him to the ground, he sprang to his feet, his rage rolling off of him in waves.
"Kagome, you can't just—" his words died in his mouth. "Kagome? Hey! Where do you think you're going?" Miroku, Sango, and Shippo all shook their heads as the enraged hanyou took off after the young miko that had left while Inuyasha was stuck.
"Idiot," Shippo muttered, earning a nod from the two remaining adults.
It only took the hanyou two bounds before he had caught up to the dark haired woman. He took in her form and the way her arms were angrily swinging as she practically ran away from him. He wasn't even trying to move fast in order to keep up with her. He could see how tense her muscles were and he knew that she was mad. But he pushed her anyway. No one ever said he was the smartest pup in the litter.
"Kagome, what the hell was that for? Just because your fairy tale stories are stupid doesn't mean that you can keep…"
"Sit! Sit! Sit!" Kagome planted her hands on her hips and shouted the dreaded word before Inuyasha could even finish pestering her. She knew the correct amount of sits to say in order to keep Inuyasha pinned until she got to the well. She turned on her heel and stormed off, fuming. The nerve of that guy! What a jerk! Maybe if he knew what fireworks really were, then he could understand.
Kagome stopped with her legs dangling over the well as an idea hit her. A smile grew on her face and she mentally congratulated herself. The town festival is tomorrow! If I could get Inuyasha to come back with me, then he could see what fireworks actually are! Kagome, you are a complete and utter genius!
The young miko waited, feeling the wind blowing wisps of her hair around her face. She mentally counted down the seconds that it would take for Inuyasha to feel the spell wear off, curse for a few moments, and then dash in her direction to yell at her.
"Three, two, one."
"KAGOME!" The enraged hanyou arrived right on schedule. The anger was evident in his eyes and Kagome couldn't help it that her smile got larger at the sight of his dirt smeared face and his messy hair. The fact that she was no longer angry and was instead smiling caused him to falter. All insults died from his mouth as he watched her sit on the edge of the well. The sunlight lit upon her and caused her to shine, while a light breeze ruffled her hair and clothing. She looks beautiful.
"Kagome, what the hell?" His voice had lost all of its anger upon the sight of her cheerful face, but now he was more curious than anything.
"Inuyasha, would you like to come home with me?" To say that the half dog demon was caught off balance by her question would be an understatement. Kagome waited patiently while his face showed confusion, followed by shock, followed by a light pink dusting that she could only interpret as embarrassment.
"Well, I…what?" He managed to form a few words and they fell out of his mouth clumsily. Kagome simply laughed light-heartedly at him.
"Would you like to come home with me for a few days? My town is having a celebration of sorts and I thought that you might like to come," she stated simply while staring into his golden eyes. Again she waited while he thought it over.
What the hell is going on? Is this some sort of trap? What happened to angry Kagome?
"Yes," he muttered without thinking, his mind still sorting through a million questions as to what happened. He didn't realize how long he had been standing by the well simply thinking until Kagome's voice invaded his thoughts.
"Well? Are you coming or what?" And with that, she disappeared into the well. Without another thought, Inuyasha bounded in after her, a slight smile on his face at the thought of spending a few days with Kagome…alone.
"Sure, sure, alone with Kagome…and her entire village," Inuyasha mumbled under his breath, dodging through yet another large group of people. Kagome turned back to him where he lagged.
"What did you say, Inuyasha?" He stopped as she turned back to him and he tried to push back the light tinge of red that he knew was evident upon his face. He felt it grow when Kagome smiled brightly at him. He once more stealthily admired her fancy pink kimono that she was wearing. Her hair was pinned back and a matching pink band held her bangs in check. She was beautiful as usual, but even more so now.
"Nothing," he mumbled again, only louder this time so that Kagome could actually hear him. Giggling happily, the miko grabbed his hand and pulled him after her, deftly dodging through the crowds easily. Inuyasha suddenly didn't care about the fact that they were surrounded by people or that the red hat upon his head was making his ears itch like crazy. All he cared about was the soft, small hand that he grasped within his own. He tightened his fingers around her own and grinned slightly as she turned her face pointedly forward, but not before he saw her pink cheeks.
Kagome and Inuyasha spent the day together as she showed him around her rather large village. He wouldn't admit it, but he was impressed by all of the people and huge huts as well as the food! Kagome bought him many things, such as funnel cakes, candied corn, and delicious spiced rice balls. He felt her grow excited as the sun slowly slipped behind the horizon. He quirked an eyebrow at her as she giddily led him away from the tall and crowded huts and towards a more secluded area near some water.
He watched in silence as she spread out a rather small blanket upon some soft grass and sat down, tucking her skirt beneath her legs. He remained standing until she looked up on him.
"Are you going to sit?" she asked, patting the blanket beside her. Inuyasha glanced at how close he would be to her once more before setting down cross-legged next to her. Their shoulders brushed against each other and he could feel the heat radiating from her body. Neither made eye contact. Kagome stared silently into the sky as it darkened from red to purple to dark blue. Inuyasha noticed that there weren't many stars out and he grew puzzled.
"Kagome, where are all the stars?" The pure innocence and wonder in his voice caught Kagome off guard and she followed his gaze directly above them. This was something she had noticed herself, that the stars in her time paled in comparison to the stars back in the feudal era. There was almost none in her time compared to the billions upon billions in Inuyasha's time.
"Well, do you see all of the lights in the buildings, Inuyasha?" She watched as his gaze flickered to all of the skyscrapers with fully lit windows. He then swept his eyes over all of the lights that lined the streets. He nodded once. "Those lights block out the lights of the stars."
"Well, why the hell can't we just blow all those lights out?" Inuyasha started to his feet, his hand on his sword. He knew how much Kagome loved the stars. She was always starin' at the damned things and saying how beautiful they are. He stopped when he felt Kagome's hand upon his arm and returned to his seat. He was about to yell at the young woman when he heard her gasp. Swirling towards her, he almost had his sword out of its scabbard before he saw the look on her face.
An excited and wide smile was perched upon her delicate face and her deep brown eyes were locked upon a boat in the middle of the water, a fair distance from the shore. Inuyasha returned his sword to his scabbard. He couldn't help but feel a little bit happier at the look of pure joy upon her face.
Rather than question her, he looked in the direction that she was looking in, and he felt anxious with waiting for whatever they were waiting for. Before he knew what was happening, a very loud BOOM permeated the air. The noise was followed almost immediately by a large blast of green light in the sky. Inuyasha found himself cowering behind Kagome, his face burrowed into her raven locks. He gripped her shoulders hard as more noise exploded followed by more lights in various colors, from blue to pink. He heard Kagome laughing lightly at his reaction, and he reluctantly released her shoulders. He remained hiding behind her though.
"Inuyasha," Kagome said loudly, so that he could hear her over the blasts. "These are fireworks. There is nothing to be afraid of." She felt Inuyasha relax behind her and she laughed once more. Reaching behind her, she grabbed hold of his hand and pulled him beside her. He nearly crushed her fingers within his fist and he huddled pressed up against her. Kagome continued to watch the fireworks and she saw Inuyasha out of the corner of her eye as he relaxed slowly.
Instead of fear, his eyes were filled with wonder and amazement as he took in the brilliant bursts of light in the sky. He never released her hand, and she quickly looked away from his face and back into the sky. She leaned more into him and her smile grew when instead of pulling away, he leaned into her as well.
The two of them watched as the fireworks continued to go off. Inuyasha's mouth eventually opened wide in wonderment and he stared with complete concentration into the night sky. Kagome regretted when they ended and a look of disappointment fell on Inuyasha's face.
"Where did they go, Kagome," he whispered, his voice tickling her ear. His eyes were still glued on the sky as people around them began to pack up their things and head home.
"They ended, Inuyasha," she replied, watching his golden eyes carefully. She had never seen him so calm and full of wonder before.
"What were they? Were they magic?"
"Those, Inuyasha, were fireworks," she said calmly, still looking into his eyes. He turned suddenly and stared back at her, understanding at the romance story clear in his liquid gold eyes.
"Oh," was all he managed to say as he realized how close they were and that her hand was still clasped within his own. He absentmindedly stroked her fingers with his thumb and she immediately blushed in response. A light breeze tickled his bangs and ruffled Kagome's pinned up curls.
Kagome's breath caught in her throat as Inuyasha etched closer and closer to her, slowly closing the gap between their faces. The realization that she could easily close the gap between their lips hit her and her palms grew clammy with sweat. The squeezed Inuyasha's hand harder and her stomach fluttered at the pink tint to his cheeks.
Before she knew what was happening, Inuyasha had closed the distance between them and his lips were pressed against hers. She floated for a moment in complete shock before she gradually closed her eyes and leaned into the kiss, wrapping her free hand into his hair.
As they concluded their kiss and stared into each other's faces, one last lone golden firework exploded in the sky behind them. Kagome smiled the smile that she reserved just for Inuyasha, and he smiled back, breathlessly.
"Fireworks," he muttered in awe, pulling Kagome towards him once more for another kiss.
I know, I know! TOTALLY fluffy and cheeseball, but whatever! I hope you all enjoyed your holiday!