For All Time

Inuyasha gradually realized how much of a saint his mother had been and how little he understood of children. Moroha was almost as brash as he'd been when he was a child. Running around, getting into trouble, wanting to play but her games were often hazards to her own health or others. She was mischievous in a way he'd seen with Kagome and her schemes brought no small amount of complaints. It wasn't often. Far and in between, his daughter was a complete angel, but she was a kid and kids were bound to get into mischief. He didn't hold it against her although he did make sure to be just as firm as Kagome was. Even if she was like him, he wanted her to at least avoid some of the pitfalls he did.

As long as he could help it that is.

So when Moroha came running to him, tears in her eyes, Inuyasha expected the worst but hardly cared of what it would be. His little girl was upset and she barreled into his arms - crying her lungs out - her chest swelling like a balloon then deflating in harsh ragged sobs. Inuyasha held her tight, letting his sleeves fall over her small form to shield her from the world. His eyes narrowed and focused on the clearing around their home before he glanced down at the top of her head.

Her eyes, big and brown and absolutely impossible to ignore, were wet with tears rolling down her cheeks.

Internally, Inuyasha panicked. He hated that she had Kagome's eyes. He could hardly stand seeing her cry, let alone his own daughter. Snapping at himself to get it together, Inuyasha wiped away her tears and tried to keep the panic from his voice, "What happened, Moro?"

She rubbed at her red-rimmed eyes when his fingers fell away, petulant but needing as she clung to his sleeve. "Papa… you won't leave me alone if I'm not good, right?"

"Hah?! Of course not! Who the hell-" He trailed off at the tears brimming Moroha's eyes and softened his voice. "Where'd you get an idea like that from?"

Moroha sniffed hard then rubbed a finger under her nose. "Hijitaro said if we're not good, our mamas and papas will go away," she grumbled, her voice barely audible.

Inuyasha sighed, rolling his eyes. Of course it would be Hijitaro, the man couldn't keep his spirits just like he couldn't keep his opinions. Laying his hands on her back, Inuyasha patted gently when Moroha began to hiccup. "Moro, don't tell your mama this, but Hijitaro is an idiot and you shouldn't listen to him. He drinks all the time anyway.."

Moroha peeked up at him, lower lip jutting in a pout. "But Mushin drinks a lot too and Miroku-oji-chan listens to him…"

Inuyasha glanced aside. "He's a different kind of idiot…" He sighed and pulled back his hands, tucking his fingers beneath Moroha's arms, then lifting her up and setting her on his lap. "And besides, me and your mama aren't going anywhere. Even if you can't see us, we're always right there."

Moroha wiggled about, making herself comfortable in his lap, and once she was swaddled with his sleeves tucked around her - she looked up at him, her brown eyes reminding him of the earth after a fresh rainfall, glistening and richly dark in color. She seemed so small now and Inuyasha's heart ached. "How?" she asked, startling him out of his thoughts of his mother and how she held him just like this.

"Mm…"

What would his mother say? No, what would Kagome say?

"Because we made a promise." Like the goddess she was, Kagome answered the question he hadn't voiced, the hut's door sliding open and both he and Moroha turned around to find her there. Sleeves rolled up to the elbow and hair tied back, a sweet smile curved her lips, rounded her cheeks, and squinted her eyes. He could barely see the wetness that was there and his heart broke. "A promise to always be there for you, and you can't break a promise."

He startled when she called for him, at a loss for words. Moroha leaning over the side of his arm to openly gawk at her mother as she approached. Kagome knelt down beside them and reached out, her fingers brushing Moroha's cheeks and finding the tear streaks that hadn't yet dried.

"Right Inuyasha?"

She looked up at him and Inuyasha stiffened up, unsure of what to say when Moroha turned her gaze to him as well. Out of the three of them - he knew he had the likelihood of living the longest. That one day, they would both be gone and he would be alone with their memories. Was it the same for his mother? Was that why she cried and hugged him so tight he could still feel the impression of her arms centuries later?

"Papa…?" Moroha asked, clutching the shoulder of his suikan and Inuyasha snapped back to focus, surprised by the blurriness of his vision. "There, there…"

She patted his shoulder. Her small hand pressing with a loving strength. Inuyasha sniffed and pulled his arm back, wrapping it around Kagome to hug them both to his chest. Her trembling shoulders pressed against him and he held tight, allowing them both to keep him in a vice.

As they'd keep him for the rest of his life.

"That's right…" He sniffed, burying his face against Kagome's hair then Moroha's red ribbon. "We'll always be together. Always…"

Author's Note

I think that it's poetic on the last day of September, and only a few days out from the release of Yashahime, we have a little bit of Inukag to both brighten our spirits and hopefully bring a little smile. I really hope they find their way back to Moroha and they're all happy in the end. I don't know how this series will turn out but you can bet I'll be there to write along the way.

Thank you as always for reading!