DISCLAIMER- I don't own Inuyasha sadly Chapter two- TakemaruIt had been two months since Izayoi was in the woods when Inunotaishou found her. Speaking of which, she knew that he was due to come back tonight to meet her father and tonight just happened to be her fourteenth birthday!
Her father told her a few days ago that with her coming to the age of fourteen, he had to start looking for a suitable husband. Her older sisters: Hitomi, Mai, Kimiko, and Tomoko were already married and had their first babe. Her other older sister, Aya, was fifteen and was still in waiting.
"IZAYOI!" her father shouted down the hall, breaking Izayoi from her thoughts. She quickly made her way to his study room and sat down in front of him. Everyone had greeted her a happy birthday and her father was the only one who hadn't. Maybe that's why he needed to see her.
"I believe I have found you a suitable man to marry," her father announced. Izayoi's eyes widened.
"M-Marry?" She said shocked. She was not expecting this to be so soon!
"Yes, you know that young lad from Setsuna, Takemaru. How do you feel about him?" he asked.
"From the time I've spent with him, I see him only as a friend," she said slightly annoyed, but her father didn't notice.
"You shall marry him on your seventeenth birthday," he said. Izayoi waited for him to continue or at least acknowledge what today was, but he dismissed her telling her to spend more time with Takemaru.
Izayoi's emotions were filling into her chest and throat as she ran into the forest. She didn't care how far she went, she didn't care. She sat at the root of a tall tree and let her emotions out now that she was alone. How could her father forget what today was? She didn't care about the marriage cause she knew that was gonna come sooner or later but her father forgetting her birthday hurt her. She was so upset she did not hear someone approach her.
"Izayoi, why are you crying?" she heard the deep voice of Inunotaishou asked. She looked up to see him kneeling in front of her. Izayoi wiped her eyes and continued to look up at him.
"My father is making me get married but I'm more upset that he forgot what today was," she said slightly angry as she thought about it. Inunotaishou gave her a few moments to calm down before he responded.
"What is today?" he asked (even though he's known Izayoi her whole life, he never actually knew her exact birthdate).
"My fourteenth birthday," Izayoi whimpered as she looked at the grass and sniffled.
"Well Happy Birthday," Inunotaishou said with a smirk, hoping to cheer Izayoi up a little bit. She gave a small smile at his attempt to make her feel better. It did help a little though.
"Come on, let's get you home," he said lifting Izayoi easily into his arms and started to walk. There was a comfortable silence between the two till Inunotaishou spoke.
"What do you want for your birthday?" he asked. Izayoi looked up at him and gave a bright smile.
"A Shirane-Aoi, because they are unique just like me," She said looking at a bird that flew by.
"Those are very hard to find this time of year," Inunotaishou pointed out as they reached the end of the forest. He put Izayoi down.
"Go inside while I join your father's meeting," he said as he walked away. Izayoi ran to the koi pond and played with her kitten until sunset. She had seen Inunotaishou leave for a while before coming back towards her room. Less than a second later she saw him jump and disappear into the trees. Curious she went to her room to see if he had left her something.
When she opened her screen door her eyes widened. On her futon was a Shirane-Aoi with a folded piece of paper tied to the stem. Excited, Izayoi tore the paper off the stem and opened it. Inside was smooth, neat handwriting:
Happy Birthday Izayoi –InunotaishouIzayoi laid down on her futon holding the flower and note close to her heart and smiled brightly.
"Thank you Inunotaishou," Izayoi whispered to the ceiling before closing her eyes. Her crush on the Lord of the West was no longer a crush, it was becoming something much more.
Review! A Shirane-Aoi is a wild flower that grown among the mountains in Japan. It's purple and arrive every year in June.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Until next time, read and review!
