Title: A Christmas to Remember
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha and Co.
Summary: "Tell me Higurashi, did you and the mythological Lord have tea together?" Her teacher asked sarcastically. "No professor, The Lord of the Western lands and I never had tea together, although we did spend Christmas together." was her simple reply. S/K
A/N: Phew! It's been a few days but i'm finally updating all the stories. My muse was nonexistent for some of them this weekend, and i didn't really want to force chapters without passion.
Anger. Hot as lava. The fires of fury and annoyance surfaced in her eyes. It did not happen often, but when it did, it typically ended up in purification. She was tired—tired of this. The constant changes, the whirlwind of emotions, and everything around her almost instantaneously altering before her. Yet, it was occurring once more.
"Stop it!"
She had not known who was listening, but she had hoped it was the jewel, or the gods from up above. She needed peace. Normalcy. Calm. Something other than chaos. She had no desire for a wish, or anything than what she had currently. She was happy. To her shock, the hue of pink disappeared within moments, and with it, came a sight much different than she had expected.
While Shippo was still next to her, so were others. Three others to be precise. A wolf and two dogs. All in protective stances, towering over her—threatening anything that came at her. She smiled softly at the display before her.
Shippo. Sesshoumaru. Koga. Shinji.
Yet, the fog resulting from the jewel had all but vanished, and nothing seemed to have changed. Glancing down at the little bauble before her, she gasped. All of its magic was gone—but nothing had changed. Right? Almost instantly, she noticed her alpha attempting to uncover the same mystery.
What had changed?
"You are unharmed." He announced slowly, but the worry remained in his tone. For good measure, he placed himself much closer to her, face to face, and sniffed. Digging his nose into the crook of her neck, he continued his attempts to ensure her wellbeing. Kagome couldn't help but let out a giggle at the scene before her.
"Sesshoumaru, I'm fine!" This time, she was much more confident about her health. After all, nothing felt different and if he could not smell anything odd then wish had done nothing crazy. Letting out a sigh of relief, she glanced at her protectors.
"Thanks guys."
The wolf prince huffed, Shippo laughed, and Shinji shook his head in disbelief.
"I see you chose an alpha—good choice." Shinji announced proudly.
Shippo snickered mischievously.
"Is that what we're calling courting now days?" The kitsune had said it quietly enough, yet everyone heard him nonetheless. Oddly enough, she waited for Sesshoumaru to deny such a claim. As seconds passed, she realized the Inu had no such intent. Smiling at his lack of a response, she too remained mute.
Sesshoumaru gazed at the miko beside him with amusement in his eyes. She had not denied the implication that the kit had all but announced. Instead, she simply ran off towards the festivities occuring. He should not have been surprised at her actions that mirrored that of a child. After all, had she not informed him of her love for this holiday hundreds of years ago? Smirking at such a simple thought, he made way to a few certain individuals. Individuals that would most definitely explain to him what had happened. Better yet, why the jewel had still been here. As if understanding his desire, Shinji all but appeared by his side with amusement in his aura.
"Soooooo….Kagome."
If it were possible, he would strangle him. Yet he couldn't. Not here. Not now. So he decided to ignore him.
"Courting? Are there pups in the future?"
Apparently, silence would not shut the Inu up.
Perhaps words would?
"We shall see."
That too had been the wrong thing to do. For the moment that such words left his mouth, Shinji stopped dead in his tracks with excitement swirling in his scent. Excitement and shock.
"Sesshoumaru! You don't say..."
Giving the Inu a look of frustration, Sesshoumaru turned his gaze to the table before him—and the occupants. Before them, stood multiple breeds of Daiyoukai, all members of the council. Perhaps they could answer some of the questions that he had. Not one to stall, the Daiyouki addressed his questions with a hint of annoyance in his tone.
"Why was it that certain members of the council will not informed of the jewels presence?"
When none of the members answered, but instead glanced in a different direction, he followed their gaze. Sure enough, a certain kit was gliding through the hordes of individuals to make his way to them. Upon successfully arriving before him, Shippo released a sigh of relief.
"That was all me."
The Daiyoukai narrowed his eyes in annoyance. Quickly, the kit began answering his unspoken questions.
"It was in my hands when she vanished. I gave it to council for safekeeping. Besides, it held little power and was not dangerous anymore. That said, I still ensured their secrecy."
"Not even to inform him?" Shinji all but tilted his head in the direction of Sesshoumaru. When the kit shook his head sadly, the council allowed him to continue with his explanation.
"You have to understand that there was a good chance we would never see her again. No one knew her exact location in terms of years. We should have payed closer attention—but we didn't."
The kit let out a small smile of disappointment and then took a breath.
"Time travel is an iffy thing. That jewel makes it even more temperamental. I wasn't going to risk it. So, I waited…"
Allowing his explanation to sink in, Sesshoumaru nodded in understanding. She was his mother. There was no way the kit would risk the possibility of seeing her again. Still, one more question remained. What had the jewel done? What wish had been granted? Turning his gaze to the fox, he was about to inquire.
But he didn't need to.
Shippo had been prepared for such a question.
"I don't know, Sesshoumaru. I don't know what it did."
Even now, the worry in his tone was easy to identify. He feared the possibilities much as he did. They understood the potency of a single wish—they had lived through it. But there had been no signs of any changes. No odd scent on her. No change of aura. Nothing.
It was far too suspicious.
A/N: Boom! Next chapter is going to briefly go over the request from the council, and slowly, very slowly, the explanation behind the wish will begin to surface. Any ideas? Also, courting if official!
Protective Sesshoumaru-Check.
Willing Kagome-Check.
Nosey companions-Check.
Let the courting begin! ;)
