A/N: This chapter is a little different in that it switches perspectives back and forth instead of focusing on only one or the other. I hope it won't be too confusing. So when you see this:
...it means we've switched. Got it? Great! Read on...
(Edit: I've tried editing this several times to get a symbol that shows up. If this one doesn't, then I give up and you'll have to figure out when the perspective switches all by yourselves)
"...Inuyasha?"
Inuyasha rolled over in bed uninterestedly, not even opening his eyes in response to his mother's pleading voice and hesitant knocking.
"Dear, you haven't left your room in days..."
And why should he? So he could walk around the castle that was once only his but was now instead completely haunted by memories of her? His room only had one memory. This bed was one of the stops on The Saga of the Almost Kisses. When he lay here, all he could think about was her sitting across from him and looking at him so innocently, like she had no idea how badly he wanted to put his mouth on hers. He had been so close, too. But he had failed. He had failed to kiss her here and he had failed to keep her. And now she was off marrying some other guy.
But that wasn't the worst part. The worst part was that she had told him that she would only marry for love. And it wasn't likely her mother had smuggled in some suitor that had won her over in the minutes between his proposal and her decision. No, he must have met her and wooed her and won her before she had ever even set eyes on Inuyasha. The whole time he had known her, she must have loved someone else.
Inuyasha's gut twisted again just thinking about it. Every glance, every touch, every laugh... they had always belonged to someone else. And it made sense. Why else had she tried so hard to win her independence from her parents? This guy she was marrying must be someone they otherwise wouldn't approve of, like a servant or a villager. Some poor lucky bastard that she met with in secret and kissed and plotted with and loved.
Sometimes Inuyasha pictured meeting this mystery man. He had so much to ask him. How did you win her? How did you keep her? How does it feel now, knowing that she's yours forever? But Inuyasha couldn't ask those questions, not even in his mind. Because every time he pictured meeting him, the very next thing he pictured was plunging his claws into the faceless man's flesh over and over until he was nothing but a pile of bloody chunks.
Inuyasha turned over again. Yes, he would stay in here forever.
Suddenly, his door shattered. Inuyasha scrambled into a sitting position in time to see Sesshoumaru standing ominously amongst the hunks of wood that clattered to the floor around him. He barely got out a "What...?" before his brother materialized by his bed, picked him up by the collar and threw him across the room. He landed hard against the wall, crushing a set of shelves under him as he fell.
"What was that for!? Do you really think violence is the best way to snap me out of my depression?"
"No. Why? Are you depressed?"
Inuyasha quirked a brow. "You weren't trying to beat me to my senses?"
"No."
"Then why the heck did you throw me into a wall!?"
"I was bored. You've been quiet lately."
"I've been locked in my room!"
"That explains it." Without another word, Sesshoumaru walked casually out of the destroyed door frame. Behind him, Izayoi entered timidly.
"Thanks, dear!" she called to her eldest son's retreating back. He raised a hand in acknowledgment, but did not turn around. Izayoi smiled, then quickly turned back to her youngest and frowned. "You are pathetic."
"Thank you, mother. I love you, too."
"I know you want to marry her. Yet you didn't say a thing when she left. You didn't try to stop her at all. And then you crawled up here to sulk instead of following her. And now I get this in the mail." She threw something at him. The something made a big fuss about being thrown, flapping about and making a huge racket while feathers fell off of it ...a bird?
Inuyasha snatched it. In impossibly neat calligraphy, a wedding invitation was transcribed on its wings. He growled furiously seeing her name in print next to someone else's. At least now he knew what the mystery man was called. Kouga. What a disgusting name. But...
"What can I do? She loves someone else."
"Did she tell you that?"
"Well... not exactly..."
"And you didn't think it was maybe worthwhile to double check?"
Inuyasha faltered. "What do you mean? What else could it be?"
"That sounds like something you should be asking Kagome."
He flinched when he heard her name. No one had said it since she left. He had tried not to even think it. But his mother was right. If there was even a chance that there was another interpretation to what had happened, then he would do everything he could to find out what it was. He had to know how she felt and why she was doing this. He needed to hear it from her. Even if it tore his heart apart.
He took off running.
...Only to be slammed to a halt by his brother's arm. Apparently Sesshoumaru had not left at all.
"Thanks again, dear," Izayoi chirped. His brother nodded.
"What now?" Inuyasha whined.
"Take a bath first. She'll never take you back looking and smelling like that."
"Right..."
Kagome stared into the full-length mirror in front of her, trying desperately to drown out the chaos ensuing just outside of her bedroom door. Her mother had gone all out. Everything was white and sparkling. Many things were covered in ice, including the staircase Kagome would soon have to walk down. Or fall down, depending on how well her heels held up. She was not hopeful that they would hold up well. Fortunately, she had been able to talk her mother down to something fairly reasonable for the rest of her attire. She was wearing a floaty, gauzy sort of dress. She was also wearing the feather hat her mother had described, but at least it wasn't the thirty foot veil she had originally planned.
The wedding preparations and negotiations had taken up most of her time in the last few days. She hadn't even slept much. The work had been a relief. But now that it was all done and everything had been put in place, now that she was standing in the silence of her room waiting to walk down the aisle, Kagome had a moment to stop and think and feel the dread sinking into her stomach. This was a mistake. She should have talked to Inuyasha, fought her parents, done anything to stop this madness. Thinking about the lifetime commitment she was about to consent to made her sick. She desperately wished she had someone to talk to that would understand. All of her bridesmaids were in the room with her, but unfortunately they were a flock of swans. Thus far they had not been helpful.
Just as she began contemplating making a jump for the tree outside her window, her door burst open. She whipped around, absolutely terrified that she was too late and that it was time. But it wasn't her mother who filled the frame. Kagome started in shock. "Inuyasha...?"
It had been a long run. And when he finally reached the mansion where Kagome lived, it had been one giant obstacle course to find and reach her room. He had flailed and fallen on multiple tracks of ice, he had frightened and fled through multiple flocks of birds, and he had fought and forced his way past multiple squadrons of guards. Finally, when he stood in the right door, Inuyasha found it hard to catch his breath. But that had nothing to do with the trek. Kagome was stunning. The swans around her were startled by his entrance and flapping around the room frantically, but she stood amongst them staring at him with wide and beautiful chocolate eyes. Her dark hair fell freely around her shoulders, accentuated by a cascade of feathers that made her seem more like an angel than a woman. The sheer dress fluttered around her curves sweetly. She was an ethereal vision.
"Don't get married," he commanded forcefully. "Don't. Unless you marry me."
He didn't have another second to think before her arms were around his neck and her lips were on his. For a moment, he froze. This was not at all the reception he was expecting. He had expected anger or tears or awkward speeches about it being her and not him. But he was not about to argue.
Come on, mouth! This is your moment!
Inuyasha returned her kiss with a passion. His tongue slid between her lips and his hands ran along her back and into her hair as he tried to press their bodies as close together as possible. He allowed himself to get lost in the taste and feel of her. In response, she arched into him and deepened the kiss even further. It was hard to say if they remained locked together for ages or only seconds. Time seemed not to have any meaning at all. But finally, with a groan, he pulled away. He was panting, but at least she was, too.
"What about Kouga?" he asked darkly.
"Who?"
"Your fiancee?"
"Oh. Eh."
"Eh!?"
"He was making out with some chick named Ayame in a closet last I saw him. I'm not concerned about his feelings."
"He's not your long-harbored love?"
"Not even close." Inuyasha grinned goofily.
"Alright then, where were we?"
"Wait. Why did you spend so much time avoiding me if you love me?"
"I wasn't! I only left you alone to get this..." He extracted the ring he had bought and held it out to her as evidence. "And I didn't run away with you because I wanted to ask for your parents' permission to marry you. Why did you say no when I did?"
"I thought you were only asking because of our original agreement! I figured if you really meant it you would have asked me directly."
"Well, that's easily remedied." Inuyasha knelt to one knee, holding the ring out in front of him. "Kagome... Please, please, will you put me out of the misery I've been in since you left? Will you stay with me forever as my wife? Will you... marry me? Today? Here? Now?"
"God, yes!" She eagerly tore off the ring she was wearing and tossed it over her shoulder, extending her hand for its new and permanent adornment. Inuyasha slid the ring on gently, relieved that his size estimation seemed to be correct. Then he stood and pulled her into his arms again.
But before they could resume their kissing, they were interrupted by a knock at the door.
"Kagome? It's all ready. But have you seen Kouga? I can't find him anywhere!"
"Don't worry, Mom. I'll send the groom down. Change of plans, though. It's Inuyasha."
There was a pause.
"He hasn't lost his fortune or been disowned or anything, has he?"
Kagome rolled her eyes. "No, Mother..."
"Then I'm thrilled! See you down there!" She left with a rustle of skirts. Inuyasha was sure from the noise she made that her outfit must be voluminous. He waited a moment until he was sure they were alone again, then gave Kagome a playful peck on the lips. "I should get in position, too. See you at the altar," he said with a wink.
After he left, Kagome hurried over to the mirror again to return her newly mussed hair to its original state. Last time she had looked into it, the girl staring back had been wan and pale. Now she was glowing, blushing, and exuberant. Was this really happening? Kagome couldn't remember ever being so happy in her life.
Eager to start the ceremony, she flitted out the doorway. Once in the hallway, however, she paused. Turning away from the staircase, she skipped down the hall to a certain occupied closet. The hard breathing she heard let her know that its inhabitants were exactly how she left them. She grinned and stepped forward to lock it.
"Kouga, I don't think this is going to work out," she called through the door. "But I hope you two do! I'll let you out after the wedding's over, so feel free to enjoy your time together! Talk about your future!"
Then she skipped back to her room.
"Come on, bridesmaids! It's showtime." She flapped her arms around until every swan in the room made a run for it, then she herded them towards the staircase. They went down, but not without a considerable amount of squawking and falling and flapping around. The musicians tried to play an appropriate tune to accompany their descent but that only made the whole spectacle more comical.
"I don't much want to try that, do you?" her father asked, appearing beside her.
"No. I have a better idea." She gestured towards the equally iced banister. Her father, who had always been much more open to defying what was proper than her mother was, grinned and offered her his hand. She took it and together they slid down to the aisle, creating another frenzy among the swans at the base. Laughing, Kagome threaded her arm through her fathers, cued the flustered musicians, and began to walk down the aisle towards the love of her life.
Inuyasha couldn't take his eyes off of her. Her staircase slide was just so very her and it made him laugh. But once she looked him in the eye and started floating towards him, even more gorgeous now that she was in the middle of this magically white and crystal room, he couldn't laugh. He couldn't even breathe. She was so beautiful. And she was his. All his.
A/N: Yaaayyy! They got married. Did you guys like it? You were all so worried. It was a little funny. I was reading all your Very Concerned comments thinking "They know this is a romance/comedy, right? They should probably assume that it's going to work out." I'm glad you got into the drama, though. Anyway... this is my goodbye now. At least for this story. You can still read my others, and I may yet write a sequel to this one, so don't leave me altogether, but this story has come to an end. I want to thank everyone for their feedback and support. I really, honestly appreciate it.. Now keep it up and tell me what you think of the ending! It's the first one I've ever written so please review!
(...if you review a lot, I'll probably write an epilogue about the honeymoon. No lemons or anything, but you'll at least get to see a bit more of their lives. Up to you. Review if you want it!)