Summary: The future Summer Queen must accept the Winter King's strange request, if they are to achieve any peace between their kingdoms.
Disclaimer: Inuyasha and it's characters are the intellectual property of Rumiko Takahashi. I only write Fanfic about it.
Author's Notes: I love me some fairy drama. I wrote this around the same time I finished reading Melissa Marr's "Wicked Lovely" book (which btw, I highly recommend!) back in 2012 I wanna say? I simply adored the complex politics around the fae folk and how they weaved a dark romance around two very star-crossed characters. Also, Sesshoumaru as the Winter King and Kagome as the Summer Queen (or Princess here, as it be) was too wonderful to pass up.
I hope you enjoy! As always, I appreciate your R&R!
Midwinter Night's Dream
888
"Are you here to kill me?"
Kagome, Princess of the Summer Court, Mistress of Tree and Flame, and ruler of Fär Elphame, asked the darkness quietly as she burned delicate little circles with her finger on the wooden railing overlooking the Summerlands.
Wire-thin vines bloomed over the lines her finger had traced, an intricate and beautiful weaving of natural flora urged gently into growth by the maiden's magic. It was with this mindless task that she masked the sheer, metallic fear of having the Winter King of Tôr Hivern inside her private bed chambers. How he had managed to infiltrate the castle and get past her guards was beyond her; but there he was now, a veritable statue of ice in the shadows of her room.
The Winter King scoffed, icy yellow eyes never moving away from her slim figure. The night had cast her dark hair in a lovely blue hue, her pale skin drinking in the moonlight, practically glowing. Sesshoumaru had often heard, be it from travelers or even members of his own court of faeries, that the Summer Princess was an exquisitely lovely creature.
Of course, he knew that already from the multiple times he had spied on her in secret.
"Kill you?" He rebutted her question with one of his own, cautiously stepping out of the shadows."Is that what you truly believe?"
"Well, why else would the great Lord Sesshoumaru sneak into my balcony in the middle of the night if not to assassinate me, his most prominent political adversary?" Kagome responded, strangely calm despite the gravity of the situation. "I highly doubt it was only to see me in my nightdress."
Sesshoumaru did laugh then, causing her to flinch; but this time Kagome noticed the sound was less malicious, more light. "I will admit that seeing you in this fashion is certainly a bonus..." he confessed shamelessly, approaching her slowly from behind. Kagome turned to him with a raised brow. He lifted his shoulder, shrugging elegantly at her astonished stare. "I am only flesh and blood, my lady, despite what the rumours say about me."
"Is the fact that you killed my betrothed also a rumour?" Kagome whispered, and Sesshoumaru froze in his steps. For the first time that night, the Summer Princess held heat in her voice.
"No. It is not." Sesshoumaru answered quietly; there was neither pleasure nor regret in his tone.
Kagome's fist clenched and she shut her eyes, willing the growing wave of anger away.
"Thank you for your honesty."
"I see no reason to lie to you, Kagome." he said softly.
Her eyes snapped open again and Sesshoumaru could see literal flames burning behind those sky-blue eyes of her.
Ah. There she is, he thought with something akin to admiration.
"That is Princess Kagome to you, ice demon."
With a smile, she could ripen a crop, and with a frown, summon wildfires. Once she became Queen and had untapped access all of her mystic powers, the Lady of the East would become unstoppable.
That is, if she lived long enough.
For now, Kagome was all bravado and no bite, her powers shackled under the inferior and burdensome title of princess.
"If you are here to kill me, then please be done with it. But I warn you, devil, that you will not get the satisfaction of hearing me beg. I will throw myself off this balcony before I cry at your feet."
Sesshoumaru tilted his head to the side thoughtfully, seeming to consider the furious woman through half-lidded lashes. "My dear, if I truly had any intention of ending your life, I could have done it ages ago." Sesshoumaru resumed his steps, one cautious foot over the other, gauging the tension. "But you already knew that."
Kagome watched him like a hawk as he very slowly, but deliberately, walked the periphery around her, until he was only a handful of feet away from her, standing opposite on the small balcony. He rested both hands on the railing; a move that could have been interpreted as casual had it not been so clearly broadcasting something else:
'I am not armed.'
Still, a demon needed no physical weapons if he really wished to hurt someone.
"What do you want?" It took all of Kagome's civility not to spit the words at him.
"Hopefully the same thing as you, princess."
Leaning against the balcony, Sesshoumaru let out a sigh, and he sounded so ancient and tired that Kagome feared he would crumble, like melting ice caps, right before her eyes.
"I am weary of war." he muttered at last into the night.
Kagome barely dared to breathe at the mere thought of what the man could possibly be suggesting. But she would be foolish to blindly trust a winter nymph; there had to be a catch.
"Are you implying I should meekly surrender, and let you claim my kingdom and ravage my people while you mount my head on pike?"
The princess winced as Sesshoumaru lifted his hands from the railing, expecting a rebuff; but he merely dropped his face into his palms, cradling his head in them.
"No." he said, the slightest edge of a groan bowing his shoulders into himself, and Kagome really didn't know what to make of this strange display of vulnerability. Was he trying to deceive her, like black ice on a road that you could not see until it was too late? "We can end it, you and I, everything. No more suffering, no more death-"
"How dare you speak so lightly of death when it was you who murdered my future husband?" she accused with a hiss, the memory of Duke Koga's death and that of others in her court still fresh in her mind.
"I have lost loved ones too." he said quietly, and Kagome sucked in a breath. Quickly she looked away, ashamed as she realized her mistake.
She had heard about the little human child that the Winter King had taken under his care; a mortal girl made up of daisies and sunlight. Had heard about how, while Lord Sesshoumaru was away on business, Duke Koga had stormed the halls of Tôr Hivern with his pack and done unspeakable things to anybody unlucky enough to come across his path. Nobody was spared, not even civilians.
And the little girl's blood had been used to paint the entrance of the gates, to greet Sesshoumaru when he returned.
Kagome shut her eyes tight. Truth be told, she had harbored no real love for her betrothed from the start of their union; and upon hearing of the attack on Tôr Hivern, held even less. Duke Koga was a valuable ally to Fär Elphame and a fearless leader; but he was also a chauvinistic brute, and their marriage had been one of duty and convenience only, not romance. He was young and loyal to her, and she was in need of a husband to ascend the throne, as her 18th birthday was still a full spring away.
That changeling child, Rin...she hadn't deserved that. Nobody did. It came as no surprise, or sorrow, when news reached her that Koga had been killed by the Winter King not a week later after the massacre at the Winterlands.
Taking a deep calming breath, Kagome willed the anger cursing through her body down, from a raging inferno to a gentle flame. With as much gentility as she could muster, telling herself that complying to him was a compromise and not a final forfeit, she uttered:
"What do you propose I do, my Lord?"
And then Sesshoumaru turned fully towards her, and his eyes looked so lost and broken and sad that she staggered on the spot, her heart tightening painfully. Sesshoumaru did want peace. This war was destroying him, just as much as it was destroying her, and if they could come up with a way to end it-
"Marry me, princess."
It was like a bucket of ice water had been thrown over her head and doused her fire.
"What?" she whispered weakly.
Sesshoumaru smiled softly, an almost sardonic look on his face.
A/N: I'm sad I never got to play around with this story more. But it really takes a lot of time to properly research fae folktales and the customs of the era (because despite this being fanfiction about two japanese characters in a parody of an English novel, I still aspire for accuracy in storytelling), so until I have more time to develop this as it properly deserves, it shall remain as is for now. Would you guys even want to continue reading a story like this? Let me know, R&R!
BONUS NOTES:
- Fär = Gaelic for 'forest'.
- Elphame = also known as Elphyne or Elfame. Scottish name for the realm of the fae folk, "Fairyland"; elp- deriving from 'elf', -hame meaning 'home'. In classic lore, the land is always ruled by a Queen fairy.
- Tôr = or torr, meaning hill or mountain in Gaelic.
- Hivern = old English for 'winter'.
- Kagome's royal titles: Princess of the Summer Court, Mistress of Tree and Flame, Ruler of Fär Elphame, Lady of the East, and Queen of all Faeries (once she ascends the throne).
- Sesshoumaru's royal titles: The Winter King, Master of Moon and Shadow, Ruler of Tôr Hivern, Lord of the West, and (Kagome's favorite insult) The Ice Demon.
- changeling = believed to be a fairy child that had been left in place of a human child stolen by the fairies. In this story, the little human's parents were gone (presumably killed, as it happened often in those times), and so she was received by the Winter King with open arms, much to the surprise of many. Her death was a terribly loss to the King, and the catalyst for him wanting to end the war.
- Royals may only rise to the throne in one of two ways: 1) when they are of age, in human time that being on their 18th birthday. 2) by marriage, where they will be seen as a proper adult in the eyes of the court. Sesshoumaru is already in his late 20s here, so has already earned his crown. Kagome hasn't.
If Kagome were to marry, her betrothed - usually someone from her fae court - would hold no political power, as she would be the sole ruler of Fär Elphame. If they already have a title, they are allowed to keep it. If they are without title or no connections to royalty, they shall be appointed the titles of "Earl" or "Countess".
It is usually recommended that the Queen choose someone of political and economic value, such as a Count or Duke from her own group of allies, as this will strengthen The People's trust in her. But there have been many cases were Queens have taken wives or husbands of no notable social upbringing; some have even married humans (although continuous exposure to the fae and their magic quickly corrupts their humanity and they eventually become one of 'The People' too.)
- I love Koga, but let's not sit here and pretend that he didn't kill Rin and her entire village the first time around in canon. Had he tried that while Rin was already traveling with Sesshoumaru during the anime/manga, Koga wouldn't have been allowed to breathe air for another day. #facts So...bye Duke Koga?
- Kagome's Royal Counsel includes: Lady Kaede, head advisor and present regent until Kagome ascends; Captain Sango, military general and commander of the royal guard; Duchess Kikyo, white priestess and mystic advisor; Baroness Souten, political and international affairs; Baron Shippo, head of espionage.
- Sesshoumaru's Royal Counsel includes: Sir Myoga, head advisor; Prince Inuyasha, second-in-command when the King is absent (only on the counsel so he'd shut the fuck up); Duke Miroku, religious advisor (or court jester, as Sesshoumaru likes to call him); Countess Kagura, head of espionage and royal messenger; Count Naraku, high sorcerer.
