*Warning: brief mention of suicide*
Chapter 25 - Of questions answered
Something was tickling her nose.
Kagome wrinkled it, trying to shake the feeling of wanting to sneeze but couldn't. Finally, the itching resulted in a hearty sneeze.
She opened her eyes just in time to see a red-clad fist land squarely on a little boy's skull.
"OWWWW! Inuyasha!" Shippou whined, cradling his head with both hands.
Isn't it way too early for this? Wasn't she supposed to be getting rest?
"Since you woke Kagome up, I can hit you however much I want." An annoyed scoff came from somewhere close to her face.
Kagome twisted around, to be greeted by a curtain of silver hair and a glimpse of a strong jaw.
Inexplicably, she felt warmth bloom on her cheeks, recalling just how they had falling asleep yesterday night. It was apparent that she remained cosseted in his arms, held flush against his torso, and her bum was seated in the space between his bent legs. Inuyasha's one arm was still wrapped securely around her shoulders, fingers splayed solidly against her waist.
Well then.
She coughed delicately, redirecting her attention to the clearly pouting fox child in front of her.
"Good morning, Shippou-chan."
"Kagome!" He dropped his hands, and bounced up a step to stop just in front of Inuyasha's pant leg. "It's afternoon already! We made porridge! Do you want some?"
Smiling softly at his eager face, Kagome complied. "Of course I do, Shippou-chan. How great! Did you help?"
"Yeah! I found some lotus seeds to add in. They're good for you." He beamed, looking very proud of himself.
"We'll be out in a second."
Shippou nodded and bounded out of the room.
In the momentary quiet, Kagome sighed, feeling Inuyasha's attention rest on her. She fiddled with the beads of the nenju now resting back in its original place against his collar bones. Her finger moved to card through Inuyasha's hair billowed around her like a cloud. The strands were soft and heavy, such a pure silver that in the daylight, it looked like snow. Right now, nothing marred his beauty. Like his hair, what she could see of Inuyasha's skin and clothes was spotless.
It was a such a stark contrast to what he looked like, tied up by Masae and injured in so many ways. But now...
It was really all over, wasn't it?
Kagome felt her eyes moisten.
"Oi! Kagome," Came his exasperated, yet worried voice. "Stop that."
His free hand came to cup her face, long fingers carefully cradled her jaw, claw tips featherlight along the sensitive skin of her nape. Inuyasha tilted her head a little to better inspect her with his serious golden gaze.
"I'm fine." She laughed softly. "Just...I'm feeling a lot right now."
It was true. While she did largely recalled their conversation yesterday night, there was still so much to say, to ask, to sort out between them.
"Keh. Figures." He griped, though his thumb made tiny strokes over the apple of her cheek gently. "Just don't cry."
Kagome nodded, then relaxed back into his arms for a bit, soaking in the feeling of being physically enclosed by his body, his scent and his aura flooding her senses. She was so grateful they were alive and together.
Inuyasha seemed to intuit her mood, saying nothing more, but held her closer.
After a few more precious minutes, Kagome stirred reluctantly from his arms. "I suppose we should go out. Shippou's waiting."
Inuyasha muttered a few choice obscenities under his breath, but moved to help support her up. He hovered close by the entire time she walked from the sleeping room, along the engawa to the main room.
Truthfully, her body ached all over, and her left leg was still rather painful but she wasn't in as nearly as bad of a shape as she'd thought. With the expert bandaging around her thigh, she was mostly able to walk on it normally without pulling at the wound.
Ducking inside the doorframe, Kagome was surprised to see quite a few more faces looking up at her than expected. At her arrival, Sango jumped to her feet, hurrying around to greet her. When the slayer neared, Kagome could see the shine to Sango's hazel eyes, and quickly felt her own tear up as well.
They embraced each other tightly, as a way to wordlessly make up. The harsh words that she'd spoken at their last encounters surfaced in Kagome's mind and she opened her mouth to apologize but was quickly halted by Sango. She shook her head, and hugged Kagome again.
Kagome gave her a watery smile before moving back, letting the older girl lead her to where the group was gathered. Inuyasha had settled in a corner, giving the girls their space. As she neared, Miroku gave her a charming grin, and a very restrained side-hug, but only at the behest of a very unsubtle growl from a certain half-demon.
Once seated, Yanagi handed her a bowl of steaming porridge and Shippou wiggled his way into her lap as she settled to eat. It was a rather disorienting scene, to see all her friends gathered in the hut and Kagome had no idea everyone knew each other.
The conversation picked up again after a few moments of quiet as each person started into their meal.
"How you feeling, Kagome?" Sango asked after eyeing the dressing on her cheek.
"I'm feeling actually a lot better than I thought I would." She swallowed the last spoonful, then smiled sheepishly. "How about you sand Miroku-sama. I... didn't even know you were there yesterday."
Kagome was about to apologize again, but bit her tongue before the words tumbled out.
Sango patted her shoulder. "Don't start again Kagome. We were all stressed, emotions were running high, it's understandable."
"Well said, Sango." Miroku hummed beside her. "Let the past stay behind us, shall we? But that being said, perhaps it is time to fill each other in? Kagome-sama, you must be wondering why we all know each other."
At that, Kagome nodded her head eagerly.
Yanagi chuckled from across the fire pit. "Since Kaede isn't here, I can speak on her behalf."
Kagome's eyes got wider. "I'm so... confused."
"You know Kaede and I go way back. But what you don't know Kagome, is that we were both drafted from our village to train as miko." Yanagi chuckled a little at the stupefied expression on Kagome's face. "It's just I decided I'd had enough and walked out before completing the final rites. After that, I learned how to suppress my reiki to avoid any trouble. I still kept up my training, but on my terms you see. I decided to stay in the city, and as you know, Kaede and I remained friends.
When things escalated with Masae last fall, the situation got bad, fast. Kaede had a hard time deciphering who was true and who wasn't amongst the miko throughout the shrine of Kyo. It was also advantageous to have allies outside of shrine clergy, because it would easier to fly under Masae's radar. So Hisaishi-sama and I kept in touch with Kaede as best as we could after her title as head priestess was usurped, connecting other like minded people within the city as much as we could."
"After I accepted Kaede-sama's request to stay in Kyo, it was Yanagi-obaa-san and Hisaishi-sama I stayed surreptitiously in touch with for assistance." Miroku chimed in from the other side.
Suddenly pieces began clicking in to place. It all made sense to Kagome now why Hisaishi-sama, the master healer had sent her to Miroku in the beginning.
Yanagi clicked her tongue. "You can't trust one single monk to feed all those children. Youkai or not."
"Yanagi-obaa-san, is that not a touch unfair." The monk made an exaggerated indignant face.
The old woman laughed. "You were a little out of your element until I stepped in."
Kagome nodded, trying to absorb the new information. "But that still doesn't really explain..."
Sango glanced at her knowingly, steering the conversation to address the questions Kagome must still have. "Kagome-chan, after what happened at the mine, we were all very worried about you, and wanted to give you some space to heal. In hindsight, it was a poor decision on our part to keep you in the dark. I'm sorry."
Kagome shook her head, motioning for Sango to continue.
"Miroku-sama and I continued to monitor the activity of the slave trade here in the city. But a large portion of our time was spent looking for Kaede-sama's whereabouts about the suspicious fire at Matsuba-jinja."
"I helped too!" Shippou interjected from her lap. "It was us kitsune that found her!"
"Of course." Sango smiled at the fox. "Then we were left to concoct a plan for her to escape."
"Hah. The weasel ended up poisoning herself too! Gutsy and effective." Yanagi guffawed. "Wouldn't put it past old Kaede, that's for sure."
Kagome gaped. One at the revelation and two, simply that there exists someone in Kyo who'd refer to their head priestess as 'weasel'.
"It was a brilliant plan. If Kaede-sama did not already have my utmost respect before, this would definitely secure it." Miroku grinned. "Who else would have known to take a specific combination of herbs so that it appeared she was vomiting blood nonstop. Her handlers were thrown off enough to rush her to the healers and then Hisaishi-sama took care of the rest."
Even Inuyasha made a low whistle from somewhere behind Kagome.
"Of course by this time, it became evident that Masae was brazen enough to drop all attempts of hiding her operations, instead going directly through her manor. We were faced with simply when and if to openly attack."
Miroku exchanged a look with Sango. "Indeed. And Kagome-sama, when you came to us with your intentions to confront Masae, Sango and I decided to just run with it."
"Still, stealth remained the best strategy. We decided to try and support you without alerting Masae. That way we could best use the element of surprise against our enemy." Sango continued.
"At the time of, what I assume must be when you broke the bindings on the youkai, Kagome-sama, it was absolutely chaos." Miroku shrugged his shoulders. "I had anticipated some aggression, but…it was fortunate Sango and I were around to protect the humans within the manor. Luckily, Kaede-sama and Yanagi-obaa-san showed up at the nick of time to aid us as well."
Sango nodded. "Yes. That freed up Miroku-sama and I to help out in the city. After all, there were quite a few of the wealthy that bought slaves and not many were inclined to leave their transgressions unavenged."
Kagome winced. She had definitely not thought it all through. Though the youkai slavery practice was still relatively in its infancy, Kyo was, by and large, embroiled in it.
"Did people die?"
Miroku looked grave. "Yes."
"There are consequences for everything. Karma as not to be trifled with." Yanagi added. "It would be foolish to engage in such horrid practices and think it harmless. Though, I suspect, it's really now that the real work begins."
"Wisely said." Miroku hummed. "The power structure in Kyo has been shaken up once again. I imagine Kaede-sama will have much to sort out, what with the shrine folk and key figures denying willful participation in slavery, and clambering for more spiritual protection against 'rogue youkai attacks' on the city."
"Hah. The daimyo in particular has been claiming he'd been bewitched this entire time." Sango interjected dryly.
"Kaede certainly has her work cut out for her, that's for sure." Yanagi sighed. "I have no idea how she's planning to handle the miko who've sympathized with Masae, well… the one's that are still functional anyway."
Belatedly Kagome recalled the two younger miko who must've completed the blood ritual with Masae. With her death, the consequences of being linked to her must be disastrous.
Sango glanced over at Kagome, who was worrying her lip over the latest bit of conversation. "What about you, Kagome-chan? Kirara split off with Kaede-sama to find you and the next thing I know, she was carrying you both on her back, passed out."
Inuyasha, to this point, had stayed silent, arms crossed tight across his chest, eyes closed and propped up against the wall, growled softly behind Kagome.
Sango took it as the warning it was, added. "If it's ok with you to share that is, Kagome-chan."
"There's not much to tell really." Kagome exhaled wearily. "I met up with Masae as planned, but I back out of the ritual she wanted me to do at the last second. I..."
At the slightest sign of her discomfort, Inuyasha had scooted up, close enough that his leg pressed against his back. Even without looking, Kagome knew what he was probably glaring at everyone, hovering over her protectively.
"It just didn't feel right to go through with it." Kagome reached back to squeeze his knee, both to assure him she was ok and for her own comfort. "When I think about it now, I think she meant to use another's hand to get rid of me, but at the time, I thought the replacement trial was just to slay a stronger youkai to prove my worth.
Then I almost died, but Inuyasha showed up." She flashed the half-demon a small smile. "And then we confronted Masae, and I purified this really strange set up with a lot of crystals of some sort. I don't really understand it myself. I'd like to ask Kaede-sama about it."
Miroku sat up straighter, interjecting. "Speaking of the crystals, Kaede-sama asked to relay a message. I almost forgot. She'd asked if you and Inuyasha could protect it for now, until she can see you."
Kagome's widened, opening her mouth to ask where it was but Miroku had already anticipated her question and gestured at her chest.
Her hand came up to pat against her robes to find that indeed there was a small satchel with its long ties wound around her neck. She just never noticed it. The detailed embroidery on the cloth was clearly intended as a seal of sorts. Kagome spun around to meet Inuyasha's gaze in surprise.
"Keh. I'll protect you. Don't even worry about it." He scoffed lightly.
Miroku grinned at them. "Exactly. Kaede-sama said that with the barrier around this place and Inuyasha, the crystal would be much safer with you than with her. From what I gather, it is most likely the conduit we'd been searching for all this time."
Kagome hummed, thinking it all did make sense. A yawn rose out of her without warning, wide and protracted.
Unceremoniously, she found herself being scooped up and half-hauled out of the room before she could gather her wits to protest.
"Kagome needs sleep, damnit. All this yakking. Stupid." Was all Inuyasha threw over his shoulder as an explanation to everyone else.
They were sent off by Shippou's indignant shouts at Inuyasha, wishes of a good rest from Miroku and Sango, and a loud chortle from Yanagi.
–-–-–-–-–
It was a beautiful day, warm and sunny, with a hint of autumn in the healthy breeze. In terms of ideal weather for gardening, this was definitely it. After a few good days of rain, the earth was nice and pliant to work.
After the second day of mostly sleeping, Kagome had felt much better, but Inuyasha had all but threatened to tie up her up if she didn't continue to rest. In the end, she'd negotiated her freedom by agreeing to drink one more dose of the medicine he made her. What he put in it, Kagome thought she was better off never knowing.
Though she complained a little, it was obvious to her that Inuyasha was still very worried. Whatever happened to her in the dungeons that day must have spooked him. It was only this morning that she noticed him relax a little more when he looked at her—the days prior it was always with a glower, eyeing the visible bruises.
The hut in the woods have never seen so much activity. Yanagi had stayed to cook for them. Miroku and Sango were mostly back in Kyo, having volunteered to help with the aftermath. This included reuniting families with the youkai children under Miroku's care. It turned out that there were quite a few formerly enslaved youkai that weren't as powerful and thus went into hiding. Shippou was integral in the operation and Kagome made sure to shower him with plenty of praise.
Even though they were busy, her friends came by the last few days for at least a meal a day and stayed the night. Although Kagome loved the closeness of everyone around her and was immensely grateful for their safety, she couldn't help but wish for some privacy. More than once, a selfish little voice inside her head lamented the fact that aside from that first night after their ordeal, she hadn't had any time alone with Inuyasha.
It wasn't like she wanted to do anything...mostly she just wanted to talk. There were still a few very important things to sort out. But, if she was being absolutely honest, she did miss sleeping in his arms. True, he still kept very close to her, but with others in the vicinity Inuyasha choose to merely sit by the head of futon while she slept.
"Kagome-sama," A quiet voice implored. "Did you want the camellia by the house?"
Kagome blinked to clear her thoughts, then turned to smile at the gentle giant on the other side of the garden. "Wherever you think is best, Jinenji."
To her relief, Jinenji, like Inuyasha, had passed out after Masae's binding was severed, but was unharmed when he awoke.
Masae's manor was to be sold eventually and the profits distributed to various philanthropic endeavours. Jinenji had kindly offered to essentially relocate as many of their perennial plants from the manor's garden to the field in the forest. Sure the plants might complain about being uprooted, and they might lose some, but it was still better that being ripped out when the new owner decided to redecorate.
Kagome and Jinenji had spent the whole morning chipping away at the pile of plants, with their root-balls temporarily wrapped in burlap, getting them back into the soil.
"Say," She straightened up, wiping her brow with a sleeve. "What are your plans after this?"
"I'm going back to my farm." He smiled at her, light blue eyes looking much brighter than she'd ever seen. "I'll still have some time to set it right again before winter comes."
Kagome nodded, observing as be bent down once more to drop another shrub into its new home. He was still hulking and looked bent over awkwardly most of the time, but somehow his posture looked lighter. Happier.
"I'm so thankful for everything you've done for us." Kagome blurted out all of a sudden, overcome by a sudden rush of emotion. "I don't think I've thanked you enough."
Pink bloomed across the bridge of the giant man's nose, as he reached one dirty hand up to scratch at the back of his neck. "'s nothing, Kagome."
She beamed back at him, happy he'd finally heeded her badgering to drop the honorific behind her name. "Well, I would love to visit you in the spring, if you'd have us. I'm sure Inuyasha would know how to get there if you gave him directions."
"Okay." Jinenji replied timidly, blinking slow. "I would like to see you too."
Kagome hid a smile behind her sleeve, hearing the 'keh' come from somewhere in the branches above her. The hanyou was lounging in a tree, with only a glimpse of red hakama dangling down.
They continued to work in pleasant silence, making good progress. All of the small plants were now snug in their new locations. This garden was so blessed with many rare plants that Jinenji had cultivating for the season.
Kagome hadn't really given thought to what her own plans were, now that things were resolving. Would she go back to her village? Or stay here and continue to work as an herbalist? It didn't matter though, because no matter what, this garden would be tended to one way or another. Kaede would see to it. Or perhaps they can let it run wild and see what happens.
Eyeing one of the larger bushes, Kagome braced to lift it. Her leg was healing well, and she was almost back to full function, aside from a bit of pain here and there.
"Woman! If I see you lifting one more thing heavier than a teapot, I swear..." Came Inuyasha's growled warning.
Kagome rolled her eyes. "Well, if someone would help, I wouldn't resort to doing it myself, would I?"
"What the hell is Jinenji for then, huh?" He retorted, jumping down in a blur.
Jinenji, having quickly picked up that this was their normal way of communicating, only glanced up amused, before going back to his work without taking Inuyasha's words to heart. To be fair, the inu-hanyou did go about digging all the holes she had specified earlier before escaping up to the canopy for a catnap.
"Ok, which stupid bush do you want, Kagome?"
He was waiting, arms crossed, one foot tapping impatiently on the ground. Though he was putting up a good front, his twinkling golden eyes betrayed how much he was actually enjoying himself.
Kagome liked spending time with him too.
A familiar meow from the air above had them all looking up.
Soaring into the clearing was a nekomata, and on her, perched a hunched figure in miko robes of red and white. They landed on the far side of the clearing, and Kagome, having completely forgotten about her plantings, rushed over to greet them.
The old woman dismounted stiffly, and turned to pat Kirara on the back in thanks.
"Kaede-sama?" Kagome rushed forward, a little breathless from her sprint over.
"Don't run on your leg like that, stupid!"
"Ah, Kagome. You look well." Kaede smiled fondly, then her gaze grew amused, spying the irate inuhanyou in close pursuit. "And... Inuyasha."
"What do you want?" He snapped rudely. Kagome caught a hold of his forearm, trying to calm him down a touch. "Kagome hasn't rested enough yet. If you're here to make her use her powers, forget it."
Kaede's eyes widened slightly at the hostility, then crinkled, looking over at the embarrassed Kagome. Her expression held a hint of mirth.
"Fear not, Inuyasha." Kaede replied calmly. "I'm only here to talk with young Kagome."
"I would love that." Kagome was now rubbing the hanyou's shoulder soothingly. "Inuyasha, would you give us some space?" At his clear intention to protest, she quickly added. "Please?"
"Keh." He launched up and back into the trees, muttering what she was fairly sure sounded like 'you don't need space to talk'.
Smiling at her teacher apologetically, Kagome motioned for her to wait while she went to inform Jinenji that she was taking a break. The gentle hanyou, was unbothered, instead persuading her to let him finish the rest of the planting. Thinking he was much better at it that her anyway, Kagome agreed.
The two women began to walk slowly towards the stream. On the other side were some large stones, where, in the past, Kaede had sat giving teachings to her pupils or meditated.
Without thought, Kagome took a seat at her usual rock, while Kaede also settled on hers. The nostalgia curled through her chest.
Kaede gestured towards her leg. "How are your injuries faring, Kagome?"
"They're fine. I look worse than I feel, I promise." Her hand come up to pat self-consciously at the particularly nasty looking bruise on the left side of her face.
"And spiritually?"
Kagome hesitated, feeling for a second inwards at the core where her power collected. "Um... pretty normal actually. I don't feel that emptiness like I did right after I purified the, um, thing."
Great. For some stupid reason, Kagome always got tongue-tied around her teacher. It only started after she'd left Kyo. Whereas before, she was always very lippy, borderline petulant. At least, away from the formal setting at Tenrinji, they could speak much more casually.
"That's good to hear." Kaede smiled kindly at her. "And I owe you answers, for everything you've managed to accomplish. I am so proud of you."
That, was not what Kagome was expecting. Choking up, she managed to only murmur in response.
"Firstly, I want to thank you for believing in me." Kaede continued. "Enough to be persistent, even though you knew very little of the circumstances. I am sure you must have pieced together the rough events that preceded my letter requesting your return to Kyo?"
"I think so, yes."
"I made a grave mistake, underestimating Masae. She started as an acolyte at Tenrinji, under one of the senior miko, a year or so before Kikyou and quite a few before you and Noriko came to me.
She was extremely spiritually gifted, powerful and also very dedicated. After she became a miko, she left for the capital to undergo further training, like many do.
I did not hear from or about her for many years, until one day she returned to Kyo, on a special assignment from the court. When I saw her again, I knew she had changed. Gone was the humble faith, replaced by a disillusioned greed for power. It was then I attempted to obtain more information on her, writing to Kikyou, who is now quite established in the capital. But amidst all of this, I was careless and didn't think to keep a closer eye on Masae's activities here. When it did come to my attention, it was already too late. She had coerced many to join her and the underground slave trade was well underway.
I needed help that would, on the surface, seem unlikely or insignificant. And I needed someone equally if not more spiritually powerful. And that someone needed to have a strong heart above all things. That person is you, Kagome."
At this, Kagome couldn't stop herself from sputtering."Me?"
Wasn't the whole reason why she never made it as a miko, was the fact that she was the complete opposite of those things?
"I must apologize to you, Kagome." Kaede's wrinkled features coloured with regret. "One, is for involving you in this without giving you an informed choice. And the other is for making the choice for you in the first place."
"Kaede-sama... I don't understand."
"I'd like to tell you a story, and perhaps then you might better understand my folly." Her teacher reached for her hand, holding it gently in hers.
"I had a younger sister. Her name is Hana. I loved her very dearly from the moment she was born." Kaede's voice grew hoarse with emotion. "Hana, Yanagi and I were taken from our homes at a young age to train as miko. As heartbroken as our parents were, they were also proud. Who would've thought a humble village would produce three girls in the same generation with spiritual gifts?
Yanagi said she'd already told you her story. Well, Hana and I continue on, and for years we both served as miko here. But I could tell that it was killing her slowly, I could see her soul dim. I should have found a way to tell her it was ok to leave the shrine like Yanagi did, but I didn't. And one day, Hana took her own life."
Kagome gasped, squeezing her teacher's hand tightly.
"I saw Hana in you, Kagome." Kaede's eyes were intent on her own. "You have a spirit that would be stifled if you had continued on as a miko. I am sorry I never told you, and that I did not offer you a choice. I decided I would try and dampen your powers, so that they wouldn't attract unwanted attention and send you home. It was never my attention to bring you back to Kyo."
Dumbfounded, Kagome took a moment to find her voice. "That's the reason you didn't think I was suitable to be a miko?"
All these years of her doubting herself, being angry at her fate...
Kaede nodded and fell quiet. After a while, a faint, but true smile ghosted on her lips. "Then again, you'd given away the nenju I made you swear to keep on your person..."
Kagome sucked in a breath—she had no idea the necklace had such significance. "The nenju I gave Inuyasha?"
"The one and the same." Kaede replied, looking a little amused. "It has a tailored spell to muffle your reiki and many protection charms. Though I was not able to examine it in detail, it seems like you added a fair share of your own before re-gifting it to your hanyou friend."
Her cheeks flushed with warmth as she whispered. "The nenju saved Inuyasha's life, Kaede-sama."
Unbidden, Kagome felt herself tear up. Kaede eyes sharpened at her revelation, before softening.
"For that, I am glad, child."
"Me too."
They sat together for a while in the quiet, before Kaede spoke up again, asking her to explain in detail the rituals and set-up she saw in the dungeons that day with Masae. All the while, her teacher looked troubled, listening to Kagome's words.
"You were not mistaken, Kagome. I am certain that Masae had been using dark rituals." Kaede concluded heavily. "As for the crystals, I only know what Kikyou was able to convey to me in our brief correspondence.
It is a secret artifact protected by a few select miko. It is very powerful and would bring destruction if it falls in the wrong hands. From its appearance now, someone have shattered it, to maximize its utility. Therefore, I must ask one last request of you, Kagome."
"What is it, Kaede-sama?"
"I cannot leave Kyo. There is too much that needs to be righted, after this upheaval. If the power vacuum left behind is not carefully managed, it can only lead to ruin." Kaede sighed heavily. "If possible, please travel to the capital and deliver what we've recovered here to Kikyou. I know she has been working hard to return the complete artifact back to its protected obscurity. With Inuyasha traveling with you, I have no concern for your safety."
Kagome blinked. It was a lot to take in. The request in itself, and also the blatant vote of confidence for Inuyasha. The Kaede of the past would not be so accepting of anyone with youkai blood.
Sensing her disbelief, Kaede chuckled. "From the little I have seen, and certainly from what I have been told, the lad is nothing if not protective of you."
Kagome ducked her head, nodding.
"After you entrust the artifact to Kikyou, then it is solely your choice on what to do going forth. If you still desire to be a miko, Tenrinji will be more than grateful to have you. But... did I tell you how I came to acquire this place?"
Kaede gestured vaguely to the slapdash house in the clearing, looking just a touch playful— an emotion Kagome had never seen on her teacher's face before. Her head was starting to spin with all the revelations Kaede had been dropping non-stop. She was learning more about the old woman than the entire time of her apprenticeship.
Kagome shook her head.
"It is a gift. From a dear man named Akio, whom I loved many years ago."
Kagome's jaw dropped completely. Well, this definitely takes the cake.
"Child, don't look so surprised." Kaede chided her with amusement in her eyes. "I was young once and much too foolish. I chose to focus on being a miko, instead of love. I wanted to be the head priestess of the greatest shrine in Kyo, not a woodcutter's housewife."
Kaede's good mood gradually simmered down to something akin to sadness. She shook her head ruefully. "Never mind that. What I am saying is that if you choose to return to Kyo—not as a miko per se mind you—you and Inuyasha may settle down here."
Kaede smiled at Kagome's persistently slack-jawed state. "Akio meant for this house to be our home, if I had agreed to marriage. He would've been pleased to know it has sheltered the tender beginnings of your love. So if you two ever wish to call this your home, it is yours."
Kagome, at this point, was pretty sure she was still in a coma and hallucinating.
"The road ahead will be hard for the two of you. Many will object solely based on appearances alone, like I surely would have before the kami bestowed this trial on us. For myself, this past year has made it clear how blindly adherent to the duality of the teachings I was. Youkai, hanyou, humans… we're all much more than black and white. And when we prize each other's freedom and right to live above all, it is never a one way liberation."
The old woman sighed deeply reflecting on her words, then patted Kagome's hand reassuringly with her own wizened one.
"I have faith in the two of you, and should you ever want conjugal blessings, I will gladly perform them."
At this instant, a loud thump came from behind them, a little ways into the woods, as if something rather heavy fell out of a tree.
Kaede smiled fondly, leaning forward to embrace Kagome. She reciprocated somewhat stunned at first, but quickly tightened her hold.
"Thank you Kaede-sama." Kagome murmured into the priestess' shoulder tearily.
"Perhaps you should also consider calling me 'Kaede-obaa-chan'," The old woman mused. "Like the fox child."
Kagome pulled back laughing, wiping her eyes. "I'm really not sure I can handle any more right now."
"Well then, it is about time I secure a portion of what Yanagi has cooked up. It smells delicious." Kaede stood up, rubbing at her lower back. "You child, might need to see if Inuyasha survived his fall."
With that, the old miko shuffled slowly back towards to the house, but not before sending a grin at Kagome.
Kagome sat frozen for a while, blinking slowly, still trying to process everything. Was that woman really the Kaede-sama, head-priestess of Kyo? Her strict, stoic teacher, and half-mother figure of her childhood, with a secret lover who built her houses?
After a good shake, Kagome got herself out of her trance and made her way to the trees. Inuyasha was indeed extremely quiet, and it was making her start to think he had outright bailed on her.
How he thought he could hide the fact that he was eavesdropping from two miko—especially one now fluent in his antics—was beyond her.
Other than the crunch of the forest floor beneath her feet, and the occasional snap of a twig, there really was no sign of the hanyou. The longer she walked, the more Kagome felt anxiety creep up on her.
She didn't know what she so nervous was Inuyasha after all. A man she'd spent the last months alone with, getting to know, growing to love. It wasn't him she was afraid of. It was what had changed. And Kagome was scared of what the change might mean.
They hadn't had the chance to really talk to each other, at least, not explicitly about their relationship. The few times they approached it in the past was weighed down by unknowns about the future. Suddenly and irrationally, Kagome was worried he might not want what she wanted after all.
Soon growing tired of the impromptu game of hide-and-seek, Kagome resolved to play a somewhat dirty card. Well, it wasn't exactly a lie, her thigh was starting to ache a little.
"Inuyasha are you really going to make me do this on a bummed leg?"
Kagome had to stifle her little victory shout when a familiar red-clad figure dropped down from the leaves not far from her.
"Oi."
From this angle, he didn't look too flustered, but the way he wouldn't meet her eyes was telling.
"So?" Kagome smiled fondly at the half-demon. "Want to go somewhere, Inuyasha?"
"Where?" He walked forward, scooping her up in one fluid motion and deposited her on his back.
"Hmm... how about somewhere where we can spend a bit of time together?" Kagome mused, settling her chin on his shoulder like second nature. "Goshinboku? I'd like to say a prayer of thanks. And we'd be alone there. As much as I love our friends, we haven't been able to talk much."
"Damn right." Inuyasha huffed, bounding up through the trees in one leap once he'd ensured Kagome was secure on his back.
The trek to the Goshinboku was a breeze when you have the abilities of a half-demon, so it wasn't long before they arrived in the clearing of the sacred tree. As usual, contrary to his rough demeanour, Inuyasha set her down very carefully in front of the massive trunk and gave her space to say her prayers.
Giving the ancient tree one more deep bow, Kagome dropped her hands from in front of her chest. She picked her way over to join Inuyasha who was crouched on one of the tree roots at the base.
Another wave of nostalgia rolled through her, as she thought about how perfect it was that they'd come full circle. They were seated in such a way that it reminded Kagome of when they'd first met, and she had brought lunch out to eat with Inuyasha almost daily.
Now though, he was sitting so much closer to her, touching her shoulder, but there was definitely a hint of discomfort between them. There was no question that Inuyasha had overheard the conversation between her and Kaede.
Kagome remembered they'd decided to be 'together' that night after they'd finally freed the slaves. But what did that actually mean? What Kaede suggested moments before was certainly one way of going about things. She didn't even know how hanyou go about these kind of things. Did they marry? Actually, did she even make sure he didn't have a wife and family somewhere? Well, she certainly assumed he didn't.
"Oi," Inuyasha gruff voice spoke up, startling her. "What's wrong with you, Kagome?"
"M-me?"
He gave her a deadpanned look.
Kagome took a deep breath, and blurted. "You know when you agreed to us staying together, what do you mean exactly?"
Well, someone had to get the conversation going.
"I thought we went over this already, Kagome." He managed at last in a strained tone.
"I know we did," She turned to angle herself to face him a bit more, but still not quite able to meet his eyes, not with what she was about to say next. "Like, did you mean as friends? I'm happy to be your friend Inuyasha. It just... seems like I was more interested in you than you were in me. I didn't even think to ask if you have a wife and children at home, before I kissed you. I still haven't apologiz-"
"Kagome," His clawed hand capturing her chin effectively cut her off the rambling tirade. "Trust me, I'm interested. I wasn't free to give you anything before, it's not right to offer you what I can't give, but now I can."
"But what about—"
"I don't have a mate."
He pulled her closer towards him, gathering both her hands to cradle in his. "But you need to understand what I am offering you. What I am, Kagome.
People will hate you just for being near me, worse if you're my mate. What you saw in the dungeons, my youkai blood, that's part of me too."
Inuyasha had ducked so that he could search her face. Kagome looked deep into those beloved golden eyes, and all she could see was raw honesty. And a want, that matched her own.
"I know."
"I can control the youki when I'm like that much better now. It's kinda... unstable still, but I swear I won't hurt you." For some reason, his tone took on a pleading note, like he had decided he had to switch to convincing her instead of just conversing like before. "I don't own much, but I can hunt. I can make sure you're fed, and—"
It was Kagome's turn to cut him off by pulling his clawed hand to her lips, gently placing soft kisses on each calloused knuckle.
Effectively interrupted, Inuyasha just stared as she touched the sharp tips of his fingers to her mouth without a care.
She wanted him to understand it wasn't what he could do for her, but just him, existing just as he was, was what she wanted. Not to own him but to have him with her. Whatever form that might take.
In her mind's eye, a scene swelled up. The flickering glow of the hearth bathing the two of them in warm light and shadow in equal measure. His eyes a dark umber up close, burning just as intensely as the fire. The texture of his chapped lips and the moist pressure of their kiss.
Instantly, Kagome felt heat flood her cheeks. Okay, maybe not just whatever.
Inuyasha was still staring at her, ears twitching madly on the crown of his head as he tried to interpret her signals.
Kagome didn't know how to proceed, nervously pulling in her lower lip to nibble.
That small action however, drew Inuyasha's attention like a moth to flame.
"Fuck."
Before her mind could really process anything, Kagome found herself tightly in Inuyasha's arms and his lips fumbled to seek hers in unrestrained urgency.
She inhaled a lungful of his unique scent, heart fluttering wild, and tilted her face up to better mold to his mouth. He was much more ardent this time around, his hands skimming from her shoulder blades to glide up and down her sides. Kagome found it exhilarating, rising to match him equally in enthusiasm, boldly tangling her fingers in his hair, daring to graze the base of an ear with one hand.
He groaned into her mouth, and she smiled back into his.
Their kiss was just as clumsy as their first, bumping noses as they altered the placement of their mouths. Kagome found she loved the little growls that punctuated his movements. The graze of his fangs on the fleshy inside of her lips infused warmth throughout her body.
Kagome pushed back, parting from him, breathing hard. She needed practice on how to breathe when one was engaged in such activities.
"That clear enough for you, Kagome?" Inuyasha panted slightly. "What I want."
Kagome grinned at him, adoration shining in her eyes. Then her expression grew unexpectedly mischievous.
Still grinning, she extricated herself from his hold, and hopped down from the tree root they were sitting on. She spun around to face him, holding her arms behind her back.
"No, Inuyasha." She chirped. "I'm not sure I'm getting it still."
The hanyou's eyes narrowed at her cheeky little face, and jumped down as well, snatching the now giggling girl by the shoulders.
"Woman, you're the one who asked me to live with you." He growled. "Even though I had to tell you in painful detail what that meant."
She hummed, enjoying her teasing almost a little too much. "Well… you're a free spirit now. I'm sure I can find someone else to ask."
"I ain't gonna let you back out now." He shot back.
"What are you saying, Inuyasha?"
"You know… what Kaede was saying."
"She said a lot of things, Inuyasha."
"Fuck! T-those blessings… y-you wanna get 'em done?" His garbled mutter was almost incomprehensible, with him now staring at his feet and all.
Kagome laughed happily, hands going to each of his cheeks to lovingly bring his face up to meet her eyes. After all they've gone through, his golden eyes still held a hint of uncertainty.
She sobered, deciding to stop messing with him. "Are you asking me to be your wife, Inuyasha?"
"Keh. What of it?"
She let out another giggle. "You're awful, you know?"
With that she leaned in, planting her lips firmly against his mouth in an enthusiastic answer.
"That a yes?"
"Mmm-hmm." She moved to snuggle into his embrace, burying her face into his neck.
"Stupid woman." He grumbled. "I'll get you back for that."
Which Kagome thought was only fair.
After a while, she pull away again, reaching to lace her fingers with his and dragging him back downhill to head back to the house.
"Kagome?"
"Hmmm?"
"What," He mumbled beside her as they walked. "What do you want to do after this?"
It was a question that gave her pause. She'd wanted to do so much once upon a time. She'd wanted to be a miko, be recognized and respected in the shrines. But now... the paths available to her were ones she had never even knew was possible. And all of those paths had a silver-haired, golden-eyed man by her side.
"I want to finish this properly," Kagome began. "Deliver the artifact safely to Kikyou, like Kaede-sama requested."
She slowed her steps. "Then I think I want to see more of the world. I haven't been anywhere other than my village and Kyo. And then…"
She paused blushing. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye.
"K-keh."
Inuyasha's hand holding her own gave a long, firm squeeze. Smiling wider, Kagome squeezed back, knowing he knew what she had been about to say, but chickened out.
He tugged her along again, continuing their leisurely walk back. "We need to go get my damn sword back, and then after that, yah, we can travel around. You ain't seen anything until you see my family lands."
"Your what?"
She realized she knew him, as a person, knew his heart, his soul, but there was so much more she didn't know. His life before he met her. His dreams for the future. And she wanted to know everything about Inuyasha.
This wasn't the life she dreamed for herself, but the future that opened up to her was better than anything she could have dream up. It wouldn't be easy, a human with a hanyou, but they would manage.
Inuyasha and Kagome didn't know what exactly they would do from here on out. But if the fates smile upon them, they would have a lifetime to figure it out.
Together.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Daimyo - powerful lords who ruled over vast, consolidated land holdings
Nekomata - demon cats usually born in the mountains as opposed to bakeneko that are thought to be once domestic cats.
A/N: BOOYAH! THE END :D (Officially anyway…)
This chapter was pretty much ALL dialogue. It was hard! Also, I apologize if it feels too much like an info dump because it is.
Epilogue to follow in one week's time! I underestimated how long it takes to edit two chapters worth of material…
Thank you SO MUCH to the kind soul(s) who nominated Kintsugi for the 2021 2nd Quarterly Inuyasha Fandom Awards, run by FeudalConnection(Tumblr). Voting will take place between April 29th and May 13th, so check it out!
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha. However, this plot, the exact sequence of words and any original characters described therein, I reserve all rights to.