Author's Note: I do not own Inuyasha or any of the source material for this story. All are owned by Rumiko Takahashi. This fic is labeled MA per standards for eventual violence, sex, and language so be warned.
...
Reconciliation
Chapter 28 – The Separation: Year 1: Summer: Part I
Summer had barely begun and the nights in the forests of Edo were still chilled by the cool winds sweeping in from the sea. The young priestess felt anything but as she reached the top of the stairs leading up to the shrine.
"Six more… Whew! I'm not gonna make it."
Kagome turned around, flicking her high ponytail across the shoulder plates of her battle armor, to stare out at the small village from atop the shrine stairs. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath of the clean, fresh air then huffed as she jogged back down the thirty-five steps from the shrine to the road. Red faced, sweat glistening down her neck and dripping from her chin, she reminded herself this was all for the better. Inhaling deep lungfuls of air, Kagome stopped and braced herself on her knees to recover when she reached the bottom. Her rest was cut short by the insistent voice of her tormentor.
"Your tea is getting cold, Kagome-sama!" Miroku called happily from the top.
"I don't want hot tea in summer, Miroku! I want to jump in the river."
"Relaxation is earned, Kagome. Back up now!"
"Give me a second, old man!" she shouted fiercely.
"You wound me!" He feigned shock with a hand to his heart. "I accept that your physical fatigue is sharpening your tongue. Shall we add to the number since you have the energy to jibe?"
"Miroku, ten trips up and down the shrine steps is pure torture."
"No," his mirthful eyes hardened, "we are rebuilding the strength in your body after months of illness and resting. You wanted our help in recovering so that is what we are doing. Less talking and more climbing!"
"I'm gonna let Shippou practice every trick he knows when he gets home, you just wait…" Kagome grumbled to herself, but grinning at the thought of seeing her son again through the pain in her legs and core.
"What was that, Kagome?"
"Nothing!" she chimed sweetly. "Coming back up!"
Kagome was thirteen steps into her fourth lap when she heard her name called from the road.
"Kagome-sama!" Kaede called.
"Huh? Wah!"
Turning around too quickly on the stairs in her boots, Kagome lost her balance and fell to her rear on the step above, giggling and panting at the same time.
"Goodness, child! Be more careful."
"Sorry." the young miko said, jogging back down to meet her mentor. "Do you need me, Kaede-sama?"
"Not immediately." Kaede said and held out a letter for Kagome to read. "I wanted to inform ye that we are to receive a new initiate in the coming weeks as I requested. Her name is Chisato and she will be coming from a village further south to stay here now that her primary studies are complete."
"Okay then." Kagome nodded, perusing the letter. "Will she be staying with you? Do you need me to do anything?"
"Not for the first several days. She will stay with me until she needs a house of her own. I shall introduce her to the village and acquaint her with the countryside. I will require your aid in assessing her skills. You and Miroku-sama, that is."
"No problem." The young miko passed the letter back. "Oh, and Miyoshi-san has thrown out his back again and needs rest. I've asked their neighbors to help keep them both fed while he recovers. I'm going back later to check on him but he needs some help with his fields or they won't be ready in time for planting."
"Perhaps one of the younger farmer's families have a pair of hands to spare?"
"Unlikely. Everyone is struggling to get ready this year since the weather stayed cool for so long. Maybe I should just offer to do it myself…" Kagome said.
"Kagome, I applaud your energy but it is not the duty of miko to till fields." Kaede admonished. "Our position is one of aid, I know, but ye cannot do everything."
"Oh, it's fine. I'm already the town weirdo." Kaede sighed and shook her head at the strange word. "What's a little more gossip? They're good people and they need help." Kagome nodded resolutely. "I've talked myself into it. I'll let them know this evening. Let me know what I can do to help when Chi- what was her name again?"
"Chisato. She apparently comes from a long line of miko with a prestigious history."
Kagome chuckled. "I saw that and she will no doubt be willing to educate us on her credentials when she arrives by the tone of that letter. This is good news, though. Well, let me know what I can do!"
"Very well. Sorry to disturb your… training?"
The elder miko gave a critical look up the stairs to the smiling and waving monk holding a cup of tea. Kagome laughed up at Miroku then left the elder miko to jog back up the stairs.
"Ha! See you later, Kaede-sama!"
"Kagome? Have you given up?" Miroku called down.
"Oh, you just wait until we get back to staff training! Then we'll see who gives up!"
"She's gonna be just fine." Miroku said quietly to himself, turning away from the fuming young woman to enjoy his tea in peace.
…
"Are you sure you are ready to journey alone?" Sango asked with a worried tone.
Kagome closed her eyes over the worn canvas backpack and took a deep breath. This was going to be hard for them, she knew. Kagome owed her best friends so much but right now they were fussing like helicopter parents facing an empty nest. Much more of those worried looks and added, unnecessary bundles and she was going to start snapping.
"Yes. I understand your worry and I appreciate it but I need to do something besides workout and help planting or I'm gonna lose it. Shippou is all settled back in to school by now and I want to go surprise him. I'll be fine. It's an easy trip and they'll be happy to see me."
"You have your hunting knife?" Miroku asked, checking her bag.
"Of course."
"And plenty of arrows?" Sango added, peering into the quiver at her back.
"Sango…"
"Is your bow in good condition after your practice yesterday? Perhaps we should examine the bowstring for fraying." the taijiya tried again.
Kagome grabbed her friend's fussy hands and stilled her with a sigh and a gentle smile.
"Sango? I know what you went through when I got sick. I am so sorry to have put you both through that. Look at me now."
Kagome stepped back, turned a quick circle, and spread her arms wide. Her wavy black hair was tied back in a long braid that brushed against the hem of her kosode. Her face and body were filled out again after months of eating properly. Her arms and legs were still thin but strong once again. Most changed was the bright twinkle that had taken up residence again in her stormy blue eyes.
"I am not her. I haven't been her for months now. I've worked hard the past three weeks to build up my strength and endurance. I need to do this for me. I need to prove to myself that I can do this; that I'm past being so weak."
Sango nodded, swallowing her frantic emotions. "I know. I do not doubt your capability. I only fear for your safety."
"And I love you for it. I promise I'm going to stay on the main roads until I get further south, then I'll cut through the countryside. We haven't been attacked by even petty demons in months."
"Kagome, just promise us that you will be careful." Sango said quietly.
"I will."
Miroku cut in front of Sango with a look before his wife could try stalling again.
"Then we have nothing left to say but safe travels and farewell."
Kagome reached around and pulled them both into a hug.
"I love you both. I'll be back in a few weeks or so."
Kagome lifted the curtain and stepped outside into the morning sunshine, armed to the teeth with her weapons and her courage.
"Where are my little warriors?" she called playfully around the house.
"Kagome-bachan!" "Kagome-bachan!" "Bachan!"
Kagome kneeled down and grunted when the three sprinting kids collided with her, knocking them all into the dirt. Laying in the middle of the road, Kagome laughed and wrapped them into a tight hug, nuzzling their sweaty little faces with hers.
"Oh, I'm going to miss you guys so much!" She sat up with another groan and looked at them all in turn. "Now, Satori and Shizuka, keep an eye on your Daddy and make sure he helps Kaede-sama and doesn't let her do too much. Komori, honey, you look after your sisters and your mom and give me a full report when I get back."
Two-year old Komori gave her a salute. Kagome stood from the dirt and brushed each of them off before taking care of her own dusty robes. Satomi, the more serious of the twins, looked up at the sky for a moment and then at Kagome.
"Obachan? Give Shippou a hug for us, too, okay? We miss him."
"I'm sure he misses you, too, but he's learning lots of new fun things to show you so let's cheer him on."
"Hai!" came the three cheers.
Sango chuckled behind Kagome and patted the young miko's back one more time as she settled her pack and weapons against her back.
"Give Shippou our regards as well." Sango said.
"Will do! Goodbye, everyone!" the miko waved.
Kagome turned away from her friends and their small family and headed south, away from Edo and out into the world.
…
Several days later…
Sesshoumaru found Rin sitting on the stone benches lining the training fields, enjoying the sun and watching his soldiers during their midday training. Sesshoumaru tucked the letter he had been reading away in a sleeve. The crunch of gravel underfoot warned Rin of his approach and she smiled over at him.
"Rin."
"Good morning, Sesshoumaru-sama!" she greeted him brightly. "Were you looking for me?"
"Hm. I am departing for the kitsune village in the south this hour. When I return, we will travel to Edo so that you may stay there for the summer. Have you packed?"
"No, I have not…"
His ward's attention was captivated again by the soldiers moving almost too quickly for her to follow. He joined her in silence, watching them for a moment. The young Captain was fending off three others with the full-length katana brandished expertly now by his single arm. Sesshoumaru remembered the conversation they had when he had lost the limb and felt satisfied that the pup had decided to maintain his employment instead of relinquishing the position and his pride. Looking down at Rin, his eyes softened subtly.
'If it had not been for you, This Sesshoumaru might also have descended into self-pity or worse.'
Rin had grown taller in the three seasons since her arrival and she looked every bit the part of a young Lady in this moment. Her fine, maple-patterned orange kimono and shining straight hair were a reflection of the pride she took in her appearance. However, her wistful sigh gave him pause.
"Rin? You are discontented?"
"Oh! No, my Lord. Forgive me. How long will you be gone?"
"Two days only. Negotiations should not be too arduous."
"Mm. I am glad to hear it."
Her attention was lost again to the soldiers and their combat.
'Perhaps she wishes to train as they do? It is possible. Even the miko is strong enough for a human.'
"You wish to train as they do, Rin?"
"I wish… Yes, I wish I could be so useful."
"Useful? You wish for employment?"
"I do not want to sound ungrateful, Sesshoumaru-sama, but yes."
"It is not ungrateful to want to better yourself. Consider how you want to do so and we will discuss it when I return."
His young ward rose gracefully, smiled and stepped closer. Without provocation, he raised one arm in welcome and Rin tucked herself against him. His large hand covered less of her back than he remembered but he laid it against her and the scent of orchids joined the sunshine of her happiness in his nose.
"Thank you for understanding." she murmured.
"Hm."
Rin released him, wished him well, and walked back to her seat. A pale blush dusted her cheeks as the young Captain laughed loudly when one of his sparring partners dropped his heavy naginata after tripping on another's foot. Thinking it best to leave his ward to herself as she contemplated, the inudaiyoukai turned around and left Rin to her thoughts.
Now, to the southern kitsune village and forward into his own plans for the future.
…
The same day…
Shippou was deep in thought over a low desk about how to proceed with his next assignment when an orb of reiki found him through the window and disappeared with a 'pop!'
"Momma!" he grinned and dashed away.
The other eleven kits in the room all immediately jumped up from their assignments, bumping desks and scattering tools everywhere.
"Gome-chan!"
"You stepped on my tail, baka!"
"She is back!"
"Kane, wait! I wanna see her, too!"
After some shoving at the door, all of the kits followed him out with giggles of their own.
The black kitsune sensei responsible for this lesson in transformation watched his pupils buffet each other to dash out of the room. He shrugged out of the black kimono reserved for instructors and dropped it in an unceremonious pile on the desk. With a grin and a flourish of his six ebony tails, the kitsune slowly walked out and into the dark hallway, whistling a tune and pulling out a thin pipe to pass the time.
…
Sesshoumaru flew over the mountains just outside the Palace and deeply inhaled the cold air high above. The restrictions on his emotions and his person melted away as he put more distance between himself and his lifelong obligations.
His planned council with the kitsune village heads would take place this evening, with the head reynard and his vixen, to secure mating rights to an amenable female in the coming year. With luck, he would be bringing his first heir home to the West before the next spring. In the decades that followed, the inu could share their heritage and the burdens of ruling a Cardinal Land with a pup of his own. An heir introduced this early into the tense alliances of the Four Points would grow up knowing the intimacies of the balance between the youkai Lords in a way none other before him had. Sesshoumaru found himself excited at the prospect of a shared future with his own progeny.
Lowering beneath the cloud cover, the scents of the forest below became infinitely stronger. The animals, trees, and the mold-laced scent of decay that blanketed all old forests mixed with the crisp scent of new bamboo, a multitude of kitsune and their strange affinity for pipeweeds, and the smells of food and drink that accompany all established places of residence.
Surprisingly, another familiar scent drifted on the wind as he descended into the forest. A human? Ripe camelias and rain. Cotton and steel. The sizzling scent of her reiki mixed with the effervescent juniper of her excitement. He knew the multitude of scents surrounding the miko well now. How odd that the woman would be anywhere near a kitsune village and so far from her home. She was not waiting in Edo for the arrival of both he and Rin for the summer?
…
Shippou found Kagome just breaking through the bamboo forest surrounding the hidden village. She dropped the small, wooden fox talisman and swore. It had been gifted to them last year by the village leader to allow her entry through the illusionary barrier that protected the kitsune within.
Kagome was struggling to get the bow, staff, pack and billowy miko robes through the thick bamboo. Grunting and tugging her way onto the gray cobbled stones that blanketed the central plaza, she heard the cacophony of the approaching herd of kits before she saw them.
"Momma!"
Her warm and genuine smile was instant as she looked up to see Shippou launching himself at her. Dropping the armful of weapons, she held out her arms to catch him in midair.
"Surprise, my little troublemaker!" she laughed.
"How did you get here?" he asked, his face buried in her neck as he inhaled her familiar and calming scents for the first time in a month.
"I walked, silly. Decided it was time to come see you. I missed you."
"I missed you, too. Get ready, though, the whole class is coming too."
Shippou jumped away from her and put some distance between them before his classmates caught up.
"It'll be fine…"
"Gome-chan!" came the chorus through the plaza.
"Oh dear."
"Told ya…"
Shippou ran back to join them and whispered something into a few ears before turning back around to Kagome with a devilish grin. Kagome only planted a hand on her hip and sighed.
"Okay, whatcha got for me this time?"
"Ha! Attack!" Shippou yelled with a fanged grin. "Just like we practiced!"
Shippou tossed a small sachet at her feet with a grunt and then a ball of his sky-blue foxfire right after it.
"What are you- Ah!"
An explosion of silver mist popped at her feet and began billowing upward, clouding her vision. The last thing Kagome saw through the mist was the haughty grin of her own kit and eleven others all clapping their hands and dancing gaily around. In her confusion, reiki welled up in self-defense but she stuffed it back down. Whatever this was, the kits would never hurt her on purpose. Now, by accident was another story…
Through the mist, black bars began stake heavily into the ground in a narrow circle around the confused priestess. Clank!
"Whoa!"
Kagome jumped when one stabbed roughly into the dirt right behind her. They grew from the dirt part upward, outlined in the glowing light of the kits' bright orange and blue foxfire as the dark bars grew higher and higher. Condensing the mist above into an ornate cap, Kagome watched the stakes meet each other at the apex over her head to form… a birdcage?
"Ah ha… I get it now." she whispered from within, grinning and closing her eyes to start the game. If they wanted to play, she'd play.
"Ka-go-me, ka-go-me,
The bird in the cage,
When, oh, when will it come out?
In the light of the dawn,
The crane and turtle slipped,
Who is behind you now?"
The singing stopped and a gentle breeze fluttered through the bamboo forest, lifting her bangs and bringing the scent of the forest and fresh water to her nose. She reached out with her reiki and found Shippou directly behind her.
"Shippou!" she said confidently.
"You got it!" her kit called back.
Riotous laughter surrounded them and Kagome opened her ocean blue eyes, turned around, and found Shippou smiling and proud of himself.
"I never should have taught you little monsters that song."
To which they replied with devious laughter and danced some more around her illusionary prison. A loud clap and a sultry voice broke the chaos and all colors of cat-like eyes fixated on the approaching vixen.
"All right now, kits, back to your sensei. Hidekatsu is becoming entirely too lazy. Run along now and ask him many, many questions to pass the day! Away with you!" came the lilting female voice from the shadows of the largest shiro lining the plaza.
"Aww! But Chinatsu-sensei-" one started.
The vixen Chinatsu sauntered out from the bamboo and materialized in full before them all. The deep burnt orange of her nine tails billowed out from trailing deep magenta kimono she wore. They flicked this way and that with a mind of their own as she took in the scene. Kagome smiled and waited. Chinatsu did not interact with them without purpose.
She was the elder kitsune of the village and had lived many centuries in this forest before finding a Mate. Her willfullness alone had provided a home for the lost kitsune of the south as the threats of much more dangerous youkai grew around them.
"Ah ah ah…" she admonished. "Good kits always, what, my dears?"
"Beware the danger daylight lends and always know when a good trick ends!" they chorused.
"And this one is ended." she nodded deeply. "Congratulations, little ones, you have bested the miko!"
"Now let me out!" said miko called.
"Get yourself out!" Shippou taunted, folding his arms and adopting the same knowing look Kagome wore when trying to teach him a lesson.
"I have a better idea." she grinned, crouching. "Why don't I just… get you back from here!"
Kagome spread her arms wide and let loose a flock of ice blue butterflies crafted from her reiki. They fluttered wildly out from the bars of her illusionary cage, taking jagged paths through the small central clearing of the village to chase each kit. The children all squealed with joy and scattered away from the cage. The younger ones only leapt into the air, clasping little hands together to catch the phantom butterflies, while the older ones used their tools and foxfire to blast them out of the sky. Distracted by the new game, the cage began to melt away and Kagome only had to touch the barrier once to end it completely.
"Come here, you!" she grinned, holding her arms open for Shippou.
Her kit held up his hands and waved them wildly.
"Not now! I have a reputation…" he whispered, growing red. "I can't do that with all of them here."
"Like hell! I just crossed the island to come see you and I can't even have another hug?"
"Oh, little one, I'll be more than happy to embrace you if that's what you wish." crooned Chinatsu, approaching with a heated gaze that made Kagome swallow dryly.
"As tempting as that sounds, I'm liable to drown in those things…" Kagome cast over her shoulder, eyeing Chinatsu's more than ample cleavage which had to be seconds from spilling out of that kimono. "And I'm not sure how close we could really get with all of those kits in the way. Goodness, you didn't tell me you and Daichi were expecting!"
Beyond the revealing robe, Chinatsu shook a voluminous mane of deep brown hair that rivaled Sesshoumaru's for length. Large fox ears topped her head and were trained forward as she approached the miko. Her large and rounded middle was heavy with new life and the vixen was approaching her due date if Kagome knew anything about pregnancies. Chinatsu only palmed her belly and laughed.
"Ha! All six of them are constantly battling for the honor of firstborn. Alas, my offer still stands should you wish to stay here with your Shippou. We have more than enough room and Daichi is an accommodating male. He will not bother us overfrequently." she winked.
"Hard pass, Chi-chan, but I would love to spend some time with you both while I'm here. Is my tent still here? I need to air it out for tonight."
"Oh, little miko," Chinatsu growled and sighed, "do not insult me again. You will stay with me while you stay. How long?"
Kagome weighed the options of arguing against the head vixen and her Mate, Daichi, on the matter of room and board then ultimately decided to let it go. Overfamiliar though she was, Chinatsu meant well and wanted only to pick her brain about the gossip of the village and human nature in general.
"Oh, only a few days. A friend is bringing his little girl to come stay with me sometime soon so I need to get back to Edo."
"Ah, so this was a visit to see your own ward and test your strength. I see. Do not appear so shocked. Young Shippou was very firm in his instructions. We are not to discuss your Mate's death-"
"Hey!" Shippou said angrily.
"-or otherwise discuss his memory so as not to upset you. Your young kit is very protective, little miko."
Kagome looked softly over at Shippou who was drawing circles in the dirt with his small fox toes. Then she saw the intermediate lessons shiro a few houses down and her eyes traveled upward to settle on the black tiled roof where Inuyasha would sleep when they visited.
He hadn't been patient enough to handle the fuss of the kits and avoided the adults as much as possible. Kitsune were curious to distraction and after the fiftieth penetrating question about his anatomy and parentage, he'd yelled at them all. After that, he'd taken to staying on the roof and out of the way, laying Tessaiga threateningly across his lap in case anyone forgot he wanted to be left alone.
A tug at the leg of her hakama brought Kagome out of the deep well of her memories.
"Kagome? Are you okay?"
"Hmm? Oh, yes. Sorry. Thank you for telling them for us. I was just thinking about how he used to sleep up there. He-" she chuckled to blink the tear away, "-he used to hate all the commotion so much but he loved knowing you were taken care of."
"How do you figure? Inuyasha always bellyached so much when he was here."
"It was all a show. He brought up coming here to see you as often as I did. Inuyasha knew better than anyone what it was like to be a kid alone in the world. He made damn sure you never felt like that."
"I guess I never thought about it that way."
Kagome gave him a warm smile and dismissive wave.
"Go on, kiddo. Go learn new things and pester that sensei of yours. Come have dinner with us later, okay? Since in private is the only time I'm allowed to snuggle you while I'm here." Kagome lowered an eyebrow and gave him a wry grin.
"Mm hmm. You sure you're okay?"
"Yep. I have Chi-chan and my memories for company. Go. I'll be fine."
"But-" Shippou nervously checked around for any spies in the vicinity before leaping up to wrap his small arms around Kagome's neck, nuzzling her face. "I missed you." he whispered in her ear.
"I missed you, too." she whispered and hugged him back, pressing her hand to the back of his head.
He released her, they nodded resolutely to each other, and Shippou jetted away with a burst of youki to catch up to his classmates.
"I hate to think of them hurting unsuspecting humans in the near future." Kagome lamented.
"An excellent class this century. Do not worry, Kagome. At their age, their magic is mostly harmless and you mortals would do well not to get too full of yourselves."
"Humans aside, Chi-chan, if you get any more full of yourself, I suspect you may have more than six."
"No, it is most definitely only six, and my last litter for the next several hundred years. Daiichi was adamant and when a Mate wants more children, he can be decidedly more," she winked at the young woman, "persuasive."
"I wouldn't know." Kagome said ruefully, thinking about when, if ever, she might be allowed to start a family of her own.
"One day you will, little miko. Of that I have no doubt."
"Well, that makes one of us."
That was still a large unknown in her life. An unresolved problem that continued to make her wonder what kind of relationship she might have with the man Fate had assigned her. The sad gaze of the Sesshoumaru of the future was a stark contrast to the fierce eyes she had met in the West. They were two very different beings but, apparently, had both found common ground in desiring her company.
As she contemplated the daiyoukai of her future, a startlingly powerful and familiar youki blinked into existence in her threat range.
"Ho! It appears my Mate's guest has finally deigned to visit us. Little one, this male is just your type. Your hanyou was boyishly handsome but this one is simply delectable." she purred. "Rumor has it he is finally intended for a female and I envy her. Just once, would I have loved to dig my claws into…"
Kagome stopped listening to Chinatsu talk about Sesshoumaru's ass as the inudaiyoukai himself dropped below the cloud cover and came into view.
'No way...' she marveled to herself. 'Take it as a hint from the universe, huh, Ship?'
…
Sesshoumaru lamented that his future Mate's presence might complicate this visit but as she most likely had no business with the kitsune themselves, he could avoid meeting with the miko directly until the contract was solidified. Perhaps then he would track her down and make sure she arrived back home safely before fetching Rin.
Descending through the cloud cover above the village, his plans of avoidance were dashed when he saw the head vixen and Kagome having a lively conversation in the middle of the village. The miko's robes fluttered in the breeze that blew through and disturbed the bamboo in leafy, viridescent waves all around the village.
'Does this strange woman know all youkai in existence or just every one This Sesshoumaru has business with?'
He would not change his plans in light of her presence. He had made his position abundantly clear on fathering an heir at his discretion. This plan had been conceived many years ago and he would see it through. Sesshoumaru began his descent into the village and caught the gleam and brightness of miko's steel blue eyes as they found him in the air. Those expressive and glittering orbs held something like longing and admiration and he tipped his head ever so slightly in curiosity. Was her soft expression of wonder for him?
…
Sesshoumaru's energy blazed to life overhead and Kagome began to fidget as his aura grew closer and bore down on them, sending her reiki into overdrive and prodding it to life to cover her body like a second skin. He approached at what had to be near-lightspeed and the closer he came to the ground, the more her heart pounded. Chinatsu remained stoic and completely unaffected but idly straightened her kimono and raised her chin to prepare to greet him. Kagome had no time to judge her own appearance or prepare for his arrival as she was suddenly too distracted simply watching him fly toward them.
'How free and limitless that must feel. To be able to just… fly… anywhere… on your own power. I never thought about how he does that. I should ask him sometime.'
Kagome gathered the wavy mop of her ebony hair and smoothed it over one shoulder without realizing she had been staring, unblinking, at Sesshoumaru on his descent. Chinatsu's cat-like, green eyes caught the miko's unflinching and longing gaze but said nothing and refocused on her guest.
Seconds later, the inudaiyoukai touched the toe of a boot down and eased to the ground in a flurry of ivory fur and silver hair. The elder inu walked calmly over to the gently smiling priestess and grinning vixen. If he was surprised to see Kagome, his flat gaze gave nothing away as Chinatsu boldly approached and held out her clawed hand.
"Western Lord Sesshoumaru! Welcome! Daichi told me you were visiting us this year."
The inu gently lifted the proffered hand and turned it over, briefly sliding the tip of his nose along her palm, refamiliarizing himself with her scent and showing her the deference her position demanded by lowering his head. It was an old practice and one singular to the foxes. Kitsune have been treated as an island unto themselves for as long as the inu could remember and his mother had been adamant about respecting their customs. They fell under no Lord's rule and did not travel or exist as a pack, much like the nomadic bear and wolf tribes of the north and southwest. Until Chinatsu demanded a place of safety be created, there had never been a permanent establishment that housed kitsune year-round.
Sesshoumaru's amber eyes flitted for a moment to Kagome, who stood watching the exchange with rapt attention as if someone would be testing her knowledge of the custom later. Her scent gave nothing away when his head lifted from Chinatsu's hand and he faced her. Kagome opened her mouth to greet him but Chinatsu was quicker.
"Sesshoumaru, I have a most interesting guest to introduce to you."
'She has not told the vixen of our connection then. Curious.' he thought.
"This is Shikon no Miko, Kagome of Edo. She is the adoptive mother of a kit in our keeping. Strange for a human, yes?"
"Less shocking than you assume, Chinatsu." Kagome quipped, turning to face him with the ghost of a grin. "Hello, Sesshoumaru."
"Good evening, miko." the inu nodded.
Chinatsu blinked her viridian eyes owlishly for a moment and looked between them.
"You are acquainted? My goodness! Little one, what a wealth of surprises you hold in that adorable human body!"
"I haven't had a chance to tell you yet, Chi-chan, but-"
"Gome-chan!" came the squeals from across the plaza.
"Ha! I thought you were supposed to be back in class, little monsters."
"We were but then Shippou sent us out here to rescue you."
"Ha! I'm fine. We're just about to go find me somewhere to sleep. Run along. Tell your fearless leader I'm fine and to find me at mealtime."
"Hai, Gome-chan!"
Kagome looked up from the small gray kit to find Sesshoumaru with an eyebrow raised and frown.
"Nicknames are inappropriate from pups to adults." he rumbled.
"Oh really? Remind me again exactly what Rin named your pelt when she was little? Lord Fluffy or something? Oh, yes, very respectful."
"That is unrelated and was not a name for This Sesshoumaru." he replied, to which the miko snorted loudly. "Why have you come to the kitsune village?"
"Shippou is a student here. I missed him so I took a trip." Kagome grinned and clasped her hands behind her back. "Why are you here?"
Sesshoumaru opened his mouth to tell her the truth when a lilting male voice interrupted them.
"Ah, Sesshoumaru-sama!" came the friendly call from across the plaza.
A thin, pale-skinned male with strikingly long and unnaturally dark hair ducked out of the shadows of the tallest shiro and walked slowly toward the odd group. His full-length kimono was loose, relaxed, and a silken forest green with white roses gathered at the sleeves and hem. They appeared to shift and shimmer in the evening light, giving the illusion of dripping from the garment as he approached.
"Daichi." greeted Sesshoumaru, barely nodding his head.
"Finally! After your letter last winter, we thought you would arrive right behind it. I see you have met our little miko! How pleasant. She is a novelty we have tried and failed to keep within our enchanted borders. Alas, she is determined to live among the mortals."
Daichi held out his hand in the same way Chinatsu had and Sesshoumaru repeated the odd greeting as Chinatsu continued.
"Daichi, do not bore the male to death. What business have you here, Sesshoumaru? He has been unusually tight-lipped about the nature of your visit."
"We will be speaking in private, Mate, and you may join us whenever you are able." His overly friendly smile revealed long ivory fangs and silver eyes that crinkled at the corners. "Might I suggest you dine with our little pet first, however? She appears road-weary and malnourished since last we saw her. Positively gaunt." he finished, clicking his tongue.
"Don't spare my feelings, Daichi-sama." Kagome snapped.
Sesshoumaru took the opportunity to silently survey the miko's condition after the reports two months ago on her health. She did appear thinner, paler, but the fire in her eyes over the dismissal of her appearance gave him confidence in her mental state if nothing else. Scorn lit her eyes and cheeks as she prepared a rebuttal for the tactless fox. Chinatsu was on top of the conversation and merely patted Kagome familiarly on the shoulder to smother the flames of her anger.
"He is male, darling. He knows not when to hold his tongue on a female's appearance." Chinatsu narrowed her eyes on her chuckling Mate. "Fourteen centuries he has been mine and has yet to learn. Come. We can lament the shortcomings of males in general over dinner." Chinatsu bent low to purr into Kagome's ear and the miko startled and turned a darker shade of pink. "Perhaps I can still convince you that my doting company would be preferable during your short life."
Sesshoumaru's golden eyes narrowed on the vixen who was much too close to his intended. One shallow sniff of the air revealed the kitsune was most definitely aroused by the young woman. Something lightning fast, violent, and unexpected forced its way up his throat and a possessive, warning growl was a second from ripping free when, after the second mention of food, Kagome's stomach growled first and Daichi laughed loudly. The inudaiyoukai swallowed the emotion and decided to meditate on its unwelcome and unexpected appearance later.
"Humans are never boring!" Daichi's light and lilting voice sang. "I was not wrong then, dear Mate. Take her away. Scrub her and feed her and then join us for dessert and tea, if you wish it."
"All of that sounds heavenly. Thank you, Daichi-sama." Kagome bowed, ready to escape.
"Of course, little miko. Enjoy, my dear one, and I shall see you later!"
The head reynard turned and left the rest of the party standing in the middle of the plaza. Sesshoumaru turned back to Kagome and she looked into his eyes to catch something like hesitance or regret there before it was blinked away. He merely nodded in their direction and stepped away to follow Daichi into the shiro.
Kagome's eyes glanced at the broad shoulders and measured steps of Sesshoumaru as he walked away with Daichi without giving her a backward glance or a proper good-bye. He had no intention of acknowledging her then. Without the suggestion made by Chinatsu's Mate to join them later, she probably wouldn't have seen him at all beyond this moment. Maybe her pride would heal faster if she avoided him all together and feigned exhaustion after dinner.
'Coward. You knew this wouldn't be easy.' Kagome mentally berated herself.
"How wonderful…" Chinatsu mused quietly, watching Kagome follow the handsome young inu all the way to the steps of the central shiro.
"Hmm?" Kagome slurred, turning to her friend. "What is, Chi-chan?"
"I wonder what it was you had not the time to tell me, little one?" A clawed index finger found its way to her lips. "Though I may chance a guess as the evening wears on." the vixen grinned wickedly.
"I'll tell you all about it while we get a bath. Come on." Kagome looped her arm through Chinatsu's. "You have to tell me all the names you've picked out for this litter of yours!"
"So many to choose from. I suggested we wait and let the kits name themselves when they can speak but Daichi insisted. Such a bother. The humans change their style of naming so often that we felt we might use shorter names this century to help them blend in. How do you feel about the name Akari? Would it fool the humans?"
"I like it." Kagome smiled. "Very cute."
The two females walked in the opposite direction of the males to find the baths and some dinner.
…
The evening with Chinatsu began with a long soak in a steamy and very exposed cypress tub behind the shiro Chinatsu and Daichi called their own. Bamboo grew up and around the tub in a wide circle and the priestess swore she saw eyes and tails flitting in and out of the dense forest around them.
The first half of their soak was Chinatsu sighing for the tense human to relax, that no one of interest would see any human parts they were not already familiar with, and to sit back and give the details of the last year of Kagome's absence.
Kagome spent the latter half of the bath relaxed against the side but wrapped securely in a towel to avoid tempting a certain wanton kitsune vixen who kept making comments on the growth of the young miko's hips, the lean muscle of her arms, and the delicate flash of her pale throat. After nearly shoving her friend away for the third time, they both had a good laugh and got out of the tub at Kagome's insistence. Still dripping with the bamboo-infused water, Kagome held out her hand for Chinatsu to take as she descended the stairs.
"Goodness but you fuss as much at Daichi…"
"Hot baths aren't good for growing babies. Come on, you. Let's scrounge up some dinner. Since Shippou is too busy, I'd like to be done with dinner and ready for bed if he comes around."
"Your young kit is very busy these days. Such is the life of a popular student." Chinatsu finished with a knowing grin.
"Popular student?" Kagome flipped her soaked hair back to towel it dry and they approached the changing rooms. "Shippou? Why?"
"Who can say? He is bright, resourceful, and confident. He takes after his mother, I believe."
"You're trying too hard now, Chi." Kagome shook her head as she shrugged on a white yukata to walk the halls. "He's happy here, though?"
"Of course, little one. I would personally see to it were it not already the case. He is a natural leader, your kit. We expect great things from him."
Chinatsu skipped all of the human steps and merely shivered her flawless appearance back into place.
"Great things, huh?"
'Like surviving with you far into the future to see everything he grew up with ruined and his mother killed? How am I supposed to fix this when Sesshoumaru is here right now and ignoring me completely? He couldn't have cared less that of all the places in the world, we met up here completely by accident. None of his staff or soldiers around to bother us and he still has no interest in even talking to me. Shippou was probably… No, he wasn't wrong. He'd know. So, what in the seven hells am I supposed to do about this distance between us?'
Kagome thought for a moment. Sesshoumaru was here on a mission of some sort. Something important enough for him to come alone, just before he was supposed to bring Rin to Edo, and to meet with the kitsune in charge. He was busy and distracted.
'Don't take it personally, Kagome. Nothing. For right now, do nothing. I'm here for Shippou and Sesshoumaru will have to wait. I'll just see what he does when he brings Rin and go from there. We were both caught off guard.'
It sounded feeble even in her head and Kagome let her head loll back and sighed.
"You are quite distracted with the twilight, Kagome. Tell me what storm brews in those seas behind your eyes."
"Fine. First, dinner. I'll tell you everything over dinner. I wish Shippou could come, too, but he was determined to finish something."
"Your dedicated little kit is finishing an important craft so that he may spend all day tomorrow with you. Praise him for his dedication, Kagome. It is rare in one so young."
"I know, I know. He's pretty perfect." she grinned.
…
Kagome sat down in a thigh-length, pale pink kimono decorated generously with delicate green butterflies from her neck to her knees. The green hankimono beneath was just as thin and just as short, and Kagome had foregone her breast bindings for the evening after Chinatsu's insistence that "the evening was for relaxation" and they would not be disturbed.
Kagome's modesty prevented her from fully relaxing until two or three cups of sake after dinner. The sweet liquor was produced in midair by Chinatsu, and put Kagome at ease as she began the long tale of her journey to find her husband, her recovery in the West, and the eventual coerced promise that would change her life forever. Unsure whether or not the news of Mating Sesshoumaru was supposed to be common knowledge, Kagome was intentionally vague about who her prospective Mate was but Chinatsu kept prodding and pushing tempting cups of sake in her direction.
"So this male you are required to Mate, you do not want him?"
"It's not that. I might one day. He can actually be very pleasant when he wants to be." Kagome groaned and flopped backward onto the tatami floor with a 'thud.' "He's just so cold sometimes. He walked away from me the last time I saw him without so much as a 'see you later.' He doesn't want me. Not really. I just have to make peace with it, I guess."
"Oh, my dear, you have given in before the true trial has begun. If you wait for a youkai male to come to you of his own volition, you might wait forever. They are prideful beyond reason," she rolled her green eyes, "and expect their females to make their own desires known without a doubt before they reciprocate. Kami forbid a male should be rejected by a female first. Again, whoever he is, is only male, dear, and cannot see past his nose. In my experience-"
"Don't give me some inspirational story about you and Daichi. I might actually vomit."
"Ha! Our story is not one to inspire courage, little miko. So sour when you drink, little Kagome!"
"Yeah well, it's not like I have a whole lot to be thrilled about right now. I have one friend back home but she's married with kids, too. I need some single girlfriends. You're as close as I can get, Chi-chan."
Kagome raised her glass to the kitsune vixen across from her and downed it.
"And you refuse to tell me who this youkai is? Even after so many drinks?"
"I know what you're doing, Chi, but it won't work. I might be a lightweight but I have my reasons."
"Will it not? If my sake has rendered you inarticulate then perhaps it is time we retired." Chinatsu purred, reaching an open palm across the table. "I can think of better and more entertaining ways to loosen your tongue."
"Not tired yet! Let's play a game then. Why don't you guess?" the miko grinned, her face growing warm with the suggestive and heated gaze of Chinatsu combined with the wine. "If you guess even close, I'll tell you who it is."
"Delightful!" Chinatsu clapped. "Is he kitsune? Is that truly why you are here?"
"No. Not kitsune."
"I know he is youkai… Does he have a pleasing form? One you can see yourself bedding?"
Kagome covered her face with her hands and spoke through them. "Most definitely."
"I am happy for you then. Now, who… Is he noble? A daiyoukai of power?"
"Yes. Noble beyond reason. More than he should be. More than anyone has a right to be!"
"A daiyoukai Lord? There are not many I can think of. Oh! The whelp in the East! He is unbound, I believe."
"Kouhei? No, it's not him."
"Goodness, little vixen, you even know his name… Are you sure it is not the poor dragon?"
"Kouhei's coming into his own now and he's nice enough but, no, it's not him. His uncle would have kittens."
"Ha! Such odd phrases you use, little one. But noble… More noble than my Daichi?"
"Yes, sorry."
Kagome gave up trying not to blush and instead folder her arms on the table and buried her face within the sleeves of her kimono. Another moment passed as Chinatsu considered.
"Certainly not more than our Sesshoumaru?"
"No, not more than him." came the muffled reply.
Silence. Clawed fingers began drumming on the table in rhythm as the vixen thought.
"I can think of no other unbonded males in any of the-"
Then they abruptly stopped and Kagome forgot to breathe for a second.
"Kagome… are you the intended female of Sesshoumaru of the West?"
The mortified miko only nodded silently within the cage of her arms, refusing to meet what she knew were the pitying eyes of her closest friend in the kitsune village.
"Little pet, I admit freely that I have never been jealous of you until this moment. After you Mate that stunning inu, you must come back here and tell me all about the firm-"
Kagome's head snapped up from the table and she glared at the overly happy vixen.
"Chinatsu, if you start talking about Sesshoumaru's ass again, I'm gonna pack up right now and pitch my damned tent in the middle of town. No cuddling for you!"
The kitsune laughed aloud and continued laughing for another moment until a thought crossed her quick mind.
"Wait… Surely not."
"Chi? What are you-"
"Shh, little miko. Let this vixen hear."
Silence passed for another few moments. Kagome watched Chinatsu scowl at the door, one cinnamon ear tipped up ever so slightly as if it aided her already perfect hearing. Her frown deepened and a ferocity Kagome had never witnessed twisted the beautiful features of her friend into the terrible fox she truly was.
"I knew he was lacking but I did not realize I had Mated such an utter simpleton!"
Chinatsu rose with as much grace as she could muster and stormed quickly out of the room.
"Chi-chan? What's wrong?" Kagome questioned, rising to follow her. "Chinatsu? Where did she go?"
As the miko padded out into the hallway, she saw no trace of her companion to the left or right. Instead, Kagome closed her eyes and began tracking Chinatsu's aura through the manor in the dark. At the same moment the slightly tipsy young woman nearly toppled a large vase navigating a corner, an enraged vixen was throwing open the doors to the meeting room with her eyes narrowed.
"What are you two plotting in here?" she demanded, earning curious stares from both males.
Daichi rose from the low table with open arms and a happy grin. Sesshoumaru remained seated and facing away from her.
"Ah, Mate! I have exciting news!"
"Do you?" she drawled, baiting him with her playful tone.
"Yes, we will be hosting the vixen that bears the next Lord of the West."
"Indeed?" she grinned falsely down at the suspicious inudaiyoukai before looking back into the mirthful silver eyes of her Mate. "And did you know, Daichi, that Sesshoumaru is contracted to Mate our Kagome in almost exactly a year's time?"
The inu closed his eyes. Daichi might be playing dumb but if Chinatsu knew, Kagome was somewhere nearby and this was a conversation he had hoped to have with her in private.
"I did not… The mystery is solved at last, Sesshoumaru. What wonderful news!"
"Is it?" Chinatsu spat. "Because you cannot possibly agree to this with her honor on the line."
Kagome peeked into the room and sighed with relief, having finally found them all. She blinked as her eyes adjusted to the bright light of the braziers blazing away in the corners of the large meeting room.
"Chi-chan, there you are. Are you all right?" the miko asked innocently. "Oh, hello everyone."
Sesshoumaru clenched his jaw but remained seated.
"I am fine, little one. However, your Lord Sesshoumaru and my devious Mate have nearly concluded their meeting so I thought to interrupt. I now believe he invited us to spend the evening together to they could plot alone. Cowardly males, the both of you!"
"What? Plot? No, I'm sure it's not that-" Kagome stuttered.
"I am certain. Are you aware the Lord of the West is trying to pass you over in bearing his heirs?"
The change in her posture was instant. Thin shoulders bowed forward and Kagome's arms wrapped around her chest to protect her heart from emotions she hadn't fully processed. Her expressive eyes turned resolute and emotionless.
"Yes." she said quietly. "I know."
Sesshoumaru watched her face fall. They had not revisited this element of their relationship since the first discussion in his quarters but he felt the rot of guilt begin to grow since he had not warned her of his intentions.
Chinatsu rounded on the crestfallen young woman and took Kagome's small shoulders in hand.
"You know, Kagome? How? How could you allow this to happen?"
"He didn't have a choice in a Mate, his ward's life was threatened if I refused, and I, um-" She took a steadying breath and faced Chinatsu. "I can't give him pureblood heirs. He doesn't want to watch them die. He warned me of the ridicule they might face even as heirs to the West. I understand."
"You are speaking of his wants and needs, Kagome, but what of your own?"
"Chinatsu, Mate, perhaps this is a conversation best held between them." Daichi interrupted.
Kagome expected understanding and affection but Chinatsu only glared at her and rounded on Sesshoumaru.
"Plans to create the next heir to the West began long before the miko was involved." the inu said sternly.
"And your future Mate is involved now. Your plans must change. Pitiful. No parent wishes to see a child die before them. I have buried six of my own. Hanyou or not, your Mate deserves to bear your children. That does not change anything. How could you do this to her? Under her nose?"
"No, Chi-chan, it's okay-"
"It is certainly not. You entered into an agreement with a male I assumed to be honorable and yet he slinks in amidst the kitsune to avoid being caught damning one of our most binding Rites. Shameful."
Sesshoumaru's low growl reverberated in the room and he bared a fang in warning.
Kagome felt the burn of tears in her eyes but blinked them away to reach for her friend.
"Chinatsu, please… please don't say things like-"
"Do you see what your selfishness has wrought? She shrinks in front of you and you haven't even enough male pride to rise and take credit for it. I will not allow this to happen. We refuse you, Sesshoumaru of the West, and you should leave."
"Chinatsu, stop it!" Kagome begged, hugging herself tighter. "You're making it worse…"
This is not how the evening was supposed to go. This was not part of the plan to get know him better. This was not something she was ready to face. Now there was no plan. They were all ignoring her completely so Kagome did the only thing she could to save her pride and spare them her sadness: she left.
"Enough, Mate!" Daichi bellowed. "Hold your tongue until you can consider carefully what you say. I agree to a discourse about changing our agreement but surely you cannot expect the Lord of the West to ignore the longevity of his heir. Less than five hundred years at the most they would live, and such a short reign is unheard of."
"So is passing over a willing Mate of strength in favor of fucking a breeding vixen simply to soothe his own fear and uncertainty."
Sesshoumaru suddenly rose, ignoring the two arguing Mates, and sniffed the air. Narrowing his eyes on the doorway where the woman stood only moments ago, now there was only empty space. He looked through the windows lining both sides of the meeting room and did not see her.
"Where would she have gone?" he questioned.
The two kitsune looked back at the doorway to find Kagome missing. All that was left of the miko was the scent of camelias and rain… and the salt of her tears.
"You have brought this on yourself. Fix it yourself." Chinatsu crossed her arms and turned away from him. "She does not deserve this heartache. Least of all from you."
"You do not know-" Sesshoumaru began roughly.
"I do. She had only finished telling me the tale of your consideration, your kindness, and her hope for your future together. Imagine her feelings toward you now. The male she considered her future Mate, here, mere steps away from her, plotting to shred her female pride while he ignored her. If you refuse to soothe her fears yourself, I will find her alone and when I do, you will stay away from her, Sesshoumaru of the West, from this day onward."
"Do not presume to order This One, kitsune." His golden eyes flashed dangerously and his brow set low in anger. The growl that accompanied his threat promised violence. "The miko is mine and I alone will ensure her wellbeing."
Sesshoumaru left the room faster than even their eyes could follow and Daichi sighed a high-pitched whine and crossed the room to embrace Chinatsu lovingly, pulling her head to rest against his shoulder and laying a hand to splay across her belly.
"That was a fierce gamble, my dear one. You might have brought the wrath of the last great inu about our heads. Then what could you say to our homeless clatter?"
"Our Kagome deserves his devotion. The ignorant pup needed a push out the door," Chinatsu shrugged, nuzzling further into Daichi's throat, "and I always did love to travel."
"Kikuko was right to ask for your interference then. Without your second letter, he might have missed her completely."
"Without her web of spies, she would not know their plans. I cannot begin to guess what that silver-tongued inu has in store for her son. She sits above the world like the kami yet spends her time interfering with the life of her only pup and one human woman?"
"A child's happiness is paramount to a mother. She believes for now that it is for the best."
"Happiness? Goodness, Daichi. You surprise me."
"A good match is rare for a male in his position. What changed her mind so completely on the human, I wonder?"
"Who can say?" Chinatsu wondered.
...
Outside, Sesshoumaru caught Kagome's scent headed away from the shiro and upwind. Golden eyes flashed in the dark as he scanned the village for her. The low lanterns the lined the pathways between buildings flickered and danced in the night as he walked by. Then he found her.
Standing on the ground, his head tipped nearly vertical, he saw Kagome with her knees drawn to her chest and heard her soft cries. He had done this. If she was truly to be his, as he had just so adamantly claimed, it was also his duty to repair this breach.
Did he owe her an explanation? He was a Lord with a need for an heir. She defended his decision in the meeting room. So why was the woman upset now?
Did she defend him to defend his pride only? Maybe she disagreed with his choice?
His life was only ever questions and unsettling emotions when Kagome was near. Another soft plea for reconciliation came from above and broke his concentration.
"I just wish… he cared about my feelings at all." she said quietly to the stars.
He heard her tears gain speed against the tile.
If the inudaiyoukai left the ground to confront her, his plans for an heir might change. If he left the village entirely, his plans for an heir were at an end.
'Change is not always unwelcome.' he had said. She had agreed and appreciated the sentiment.
Sesshoumaru had agreed that things between them, and many other constants in his life like the warring of the great lands, would need to change if they were to survive. Was this a trial to test his resolve?
Would a hanyou heir some time into the future satisfy his need? Could he live and die protecting them, teaching them, and watching them grow?
If the world he knew was changing, would his fears of their rejection still hold water? Rin lived happily in the Palace as a human. So would the miko when the time came. If two humans could live happily amongst youkai, was it still realistic to assume the worst of his own kind?
Only he and Kagome could puzzle through the answers, he decided, and maybe together, they might forge a new way.
With uncertainty and guilt in his heart, Sesshoumaru leapt from the ground to the roof and the seed of change Kagome planted almost a year ago cracked open and began to grow.
...
AN: Summer is going to be three chapters as well. I'd apologize for the ever-growing length but this season is going to be one of my favorites. This chapter might be my favorite so far, actually. Hope everyone is still well and happy! Next time, Sesshoumaru and Kagome air it all out and come to an agreement!