It was a warm day in Edo. It was early spring, the cherry blossoms were slowly turning the beautiful shade of red that Kagome had so loved, and last frost hadn't been so long ago, but it was long enough to be sure it was safe to sow the seeds of this year's harvest, primarily rice and massive daikon radishes. Shippo could see on Inu-Yasha's face that he wished the priestess from the future were still with them. She'd gone down the well a year ago, vanished without a trace as she usually had, except this time she didn't come back. Everyone found themselves worrying about what had become of her, and the half-demon especially made a point of finding other ways to occupy his time besides thinking about her. Today, he was digging a hole not too far from the sacred tree and the old well, tempting many a joke. It was a small thing, perfectly round, maybe enough to fit a particularly large fist.
Inside it, one clawed hand carefully placed a small handful something small, delicate and precious- the seeds of a maple tree. Caring for it would give him something to do beyond farm work, he supposed, his other hand rolling one of his subjugation beads between forefinger and thumb, almost wishing she would 'sit' him again. He needed to be occupied. He also remembered something Kagome had told him about people in a far-off land who harvested maple trees to make syrup from their sap. She'd given him a rundown on the process, and he was fairly sure he could replicate the confection she'd given him on one of their trips to the future. He slowly, carefully covered over the seeds with the soil and poured a little water on it, and, being the fool he was, he sat before it and waited.
"Uh... Inu-Yasha?" Shippo queried. "What're you doing?"
"Waiting for the tree to grow, duh," the half-demon answered, as if this were the most reasonable and obvious thing in the world.
Shippo could only shake his head and walk away, dumbfounded at his older friend's ignorance and unwilling to risk a smack upside the head for any effort to educate him.
MUQFF
A day later, Miroku came upon the half-demon still waiting for his tree, looking frustrated. Shippo, perched on the monk's shoulder, resisted the urge to tell Miroku he'd said their friend would still be sitting there. "Inu-Yasha?"
"What? I'm busy waitin' for this tree."
"You... Do realize that trees take years to grow, right?" Miroku asked, baffled.
"Shippo, did you tell Miroku to say that to mess with me?"
"No, you big dummy!" Shippo yelled, exasperated beyond the point of reason. "Trees really do take a long time to grow! It might be ten years or more before you can even call it a tree! And that's if you take good care of it. Which I doubt."
"Oh, shut up, you stupid fox! I'm gonna take great care of this tree, you'll see, you little brat!"
Miroku could only sigh and shake his head. Some things never changed.
"Yeah, sure. I bet you get bored of it and walk away inside of a week," Shippo taunted. "Patience is a virtue, but I'm not sure you know what that means!"
Shippo was quickly silenced and quickly regretted going as far as he had, nursing a fresh goose egg. How the half-demon always managed to strike the same spot was beyond him.
MUQFF
Shippo found himself proven wrong. Inu-Yasha carefully tended his maple tree every day, with guidance from Kaede and the farming villagers on the care of plants, watering it in moderation and feeding it with the same fertilizers the villagers used for their crops in small amounts. Shippo and Miroku found themselves impressed with his dedication, but even more so with his newfound ability to seek help without being rude or abrasive to maintain his pride. With its caretaker's guidance, the maple grew far more rapidly than anyone might have expected. Over the next two years, it shot up to be very nearly as tall as a man, an impressive rate of growth for such a thing. It was spring once more when Kagome returned, under red cherry blossoms and a growing tree, one she was quite sure hadn't been there the last time she'd crawled out of the well. Inu-Yasha was so close he caught her scent immediately, and of course the first thing he could think to do was call her name. "Kagome!"
"Inu-Ya-" Kagome began, but was cut off when a blur of red and silver came crashing into her, sweeping her up off her feet and holding her close. Before she knew it, she was staring into those familiar golden eyes she'd so missed for the last three years. "Inu-Yasha..."
"Kagome. I'm so glad you came back."
"So am I," she said. "I'm glad I get to see you again."
"I'm glad I was close enough to be the first one who got to see you, since I was out here with the tree. Everyone was worried when you didn't come back. I couldn't go to you, either."
"I know. The well sealed itself. Honestly, I kept jumping down out of habit. I'm glad I did. So, out with the tree? Sleeping in the sacred branches again? Some things never change."
"What? Nah, I'm talking about that," he said, pointing his thumb at the maple sapling. "I started growing it for something to do. Plus, I thought I might be able to get some of that syrup stuff out of it."
"Wrong kind of maple. Still, I'm impressed. I'm sure it's going to be big."
Inu-Yasha's keen nose twitched, picking up the smell of their friends rushing out to meet them, having heard the dog demon call Kagome's name. Kagome's ears picked up the chorus of voices calling for her not long after, and she called each of their names in turn. All, including herself, were overjoyed at her return, and had three years of catching up to do. Miroku gently nudged his half-demon friend in the ribs to catch his attention. "Shippo was right," he said. "Patience is a virtue, my friend, and virtue is always rewarded. In other words, good things come to those who wait!"
The half-demon simply rolled his eyes. Later that year, he and his priestess would be married under (or, rather, in front of, given its small size) that very tree, and from then on they cared for it together, nurturing its rapid growth. Nearly five hundred years later, a much younger version of Kagome's mother found herself puzzling over a maple that had always been there, but felt as though it hadn't. It always stood out to her as special, so much so that she chose to marry her husband under it, and had two beautiful children. And so, life went on.