Chapter 16
Afterwards
Kagome woke up slowly, noticing she seemed to be in something soft and warm and was contently curled up against Sesshomaru, almost hugging him like a teddy bear with one leg wrapped around his and her head resting on his chest with a lock of hair clutched in her fist. She frowned as she realized they were in their bed at the mansion and not in a tent on the battle field, and never mind the intimate position she was in.
She bolted fully awake in confusion, sitting up so fast it caused the room to spin. She groaned as she laid back down, throwing an arm over her eyes and groaning.
"Kagome-sama." Akio called softly, concern in her voice as she sat down next to her.
"How did I get here?" Kagome asked as the world ceased spinning at such an alarming rate, though it was still spinning.
She removed her arm from her eyes and blinked up into the worried face of Akio, the Kitsune leaning over the bed, peering into her eyes.
"We carried you back." Akio answered.
"How long ago?" She asked.
"A week ago." Akio answered.
"What?" Kagome asked shocked. "I've been out for a week?"
"You've been unconscious for two weeks. We were starting to fear for you and Sesshomaru-sama."
"Sesshomaru?"
She turned to look at him. He was still sleeping deeply and was not at all disturbed by her movements. Frowning, she let a small amount of her power creep out to him and found the small 'knot' in his mind that was keeping him out.
She 'untied' it and watched in satisfaction as his breathing picked up and golden eyes fluttered open to look up at her.
His eyes held confusion for a brief second before settling into their usual emotionless orbs, though not before she saw relief cross them as his eyes focused on her.
"Akio-sama, thank you for attending to us. I think we would like to get cleaned up and then address those we are fortunate enough to call friend."
"Of course. Please take your time and do not over overexert yourselves. Terea-sama and Sekira have also cared for you. Those children of yours have also been worried. The girl had picked flowers everyday and the kit speaks to you daily."
"What of Miroku-sama, Sango-chan, Kirara and Inuyasha?" She asked.
"The humans and nekoyoukai have returned to a nearby human village. As for Inuyasha…."
"Keh. I'm right here, making sure you two don't die on me." He snorted as he barged into the room, interrupting lady Akio, whose face held amusement before being replaced by a scowl.
Kagome eeped as she quickly covered her naked body with the bed sheets and shouted 'Oswari' loud enough it echoed, followed by a satisfied 'thump' as Inuyasha hit the ground face first.
"Hanyou, have you no shred of decency." Sesshomaru scolded, speaking for the first time since waking up.
"Keh. Who do you think carried your sorry ass home? I knew I should have just left you there." He snorted from the ground.
"That is no excuse to just barge in on us." Kagome shouted.
"Keh. Scared I might come in at a bad time?" He snorted from his place on the ground.
Kagome blushed deeply, then turned scarlet with rage as Sesshomaru just raised an eyebrow at his brother.
"You can be so…"
And with that the two of them diverged into a shouting match. Lady Akio excused herself and left. Neither of them noticed as they continued to trade insults and continued to misread each others apologises. It was rather amusing, at least for a while.
Finally, Sesshomaru cleared his throat, catching both of their attentions. Inuyasha just blinked at him as Kagome suddenly looked abashed and apologized with a "gomen, Sesshomaru-sama."
"Inuyasha. You may continue this conversation with Kagome after we have cleaned up and eaten."
"Keh." Was Inuyasha's reply, but he did turn and leave. "Remember what we talked about, big brother." Inuyasha reminded as he left.
Sesshomaru felt a headache coming on as Kagome looked at him curiously.
"What conversation?" She asked curiously.
"It is not important. Come. Let us bathe and eat."
Nodding her head in agreement, they fell into their normal morning routine, despite the fact neither one of them were very steady on their feet at first and Kagome still couldn't use her wrist. Food was brought to them in the bath house and she noticed all of his wounds had healed. Go figure. Damn superior youkai healing powers.
She looked down to her broken wrist. Apparently Akio, who was an accomplished healer, had tended to it and she was sternly ordered not to use it for several months while the bones healed.
The shikon no tama was now around her neck as it had been the first time she found the jewel. She was worried about it. It didn't feel right since having absorbed 'Naraku,' leaving only the burned bandit Onigumo behind. She felt more drained than normal and could tell that it was taking more power to keep the jewel purified than it first had.
Or was it just her imagination? After all the first time she had held the completed jewel she was still using her power subconsciously. It had also been corrupted for the last four years, so perhaps it was no surprise that it would take more to purify it than when she had first been given it.
"What is bothering you?" Sesshomaru asked.
"Nothing." She denied, turning her gaze from the jewel to him.
He looked at her, but let the subject rest.
"Where did you find that armour and bow?" He asked.
She sighed, but looked him straight into the eye.
"Please pay close attention to my scent. Will you be able to read my scent here or should I get out of the water?"
"I can read your scent fine." He answered.
Water clung to scent strongly and as long as it wasn't fast moving it actually amplified the scent and would linger for days.
She nodded her head as she began.
"I thought about how hard it would be for me to rule our lands without your help. I thought about how I could possibly raise our child alone, even with Miroku-sama and Sango-chan to help me.
"I am human, our child will be a hanyou, unable to defend himself, or herself, yet. The West would be very weak and many enemies would seek to conquer it and there was no telling if your forces would answer to me without the fear of your reprehension." Tears streamed down her face in painful memory, but she forced herself to continue.
"I fell into despair and had a terrible nightmare. Before I could fall completely into the growing darkness, a light appeared and I met a man I had never seen before but recognized from Myoga-jiichan's descriptions."
She paused.
"It was you father, Inutashio. I was shocked at first, and demanded to know how he could possibly be in my dreams. He said 'Your pain called to me. Being mated to my son makes you family, thus I heard your call.'
"He offered me council and we talked a little. I never knew Inutashio mated Inuyasha's mother in Midsummer's heat as well. He said he learned to love her after seeing her undying loyalty to him.
"He also mentioned your own mother."
She saw his eyes harden at that.
"And what did he say about my mother?" He asked coldly.
"That he loved her very much and that she died protecting you when you were very young. He was proud of her and cursed the day she was taken from you both. He said he regretted not being able to spend much time with you as a child and felt guilty for spending so much of it with Inuyasha, since by the time Inuyasha was born you were old enough to help him rule his lands, freeing up some of his time."
"What else did he say?"
"Not much after that." She shrugged. "We just chatted. I woke up and went back to planning my attack on Naraku. He visited me again the night before the confrontation and told me where the find the armour and bow I was using. He said I should use them and wished me the best of luck."
Sesshomaru was silent.
He stood up suddenly and walked away from her.
"You do not believe me?" She said in a defeated whisper.
He paused as he reached the edge of the pool.
"I believe you." He said as he climbed out, dressed and left.
She sighed and got out as well, silently walking back to her room, thinking herself a fool to have revealed so much to him. She changed into a pure black robe of mourning for those who lost their lives, or had their lives corrupted, by Naraku.
"Kagome." Came two plaintive cries as Rin and Shippo invaded her room.
She smiled down at them, though the smile was forced. Neither noticed as they latched onto her, tears streaming down their face and they told her how worried they had been. Rin instantly demanded to know where Sesshomaru-sama was and Kagome sighed.
"Sesshomaru-sama wants to be alone for a few minutes I think." She answered.
"Why?" Rin asked.
"Sometimes, people learn about something that upsets them, or makes them uncomfortable, and they want a little time alone to think." She answered.
"Do you want some time alone to think?" Shippo asked.
"Hai. But it has been a while and if you two need me right now, than I am all yours." She smiled.
"That's okay Kagome-sama. Shippo and I have to plan the return party for tomorrow night. Sekira-sama is so helpful, and Akio-sama, Terea-sama, and Aleria-sama are helping." Rin said proudly.
"I'm very proud of you both." She said warmly.
Both children left, closing the door behind them as Kagome collapsed onto her bed, faintly realizing this is the first time she had ever touched it and finding that slightly amusing for some reason.
"Everything turned out alright, so why do I feel so bad? Naraku is dead. Sesshomaru and Inuyasha are free. Kohaku is returned to Sango-chan. Miroku-sama's kazanna is gone. Why do I feel so empty?"
She curled up on her never used before bed and cried silently as she tried to figure out why it was she felt so empty all of a sudden.
"There is nothing left for me here." She realized. "The quest is over. Before I always dreamed of completing the jewel and returning to my time to pick up the life I left behind, but even that is denied to me now.
"I am trapped here, mated to a man who cares very little about me short of what honor demands of him. I always pictured myself with Inuyasha, but I don't even have him. Nothing ended the way it was suppose to, not for me anyhow.
"Sango-chan has Kohaku-kun. Miroku-sama is free of his curse. Kouga-kun's tribe has been avenged. Shippo-chan has Rin-chan and me. Rin-chan has me and her Sesshomaru-sama. Sesshomaru's pride's been restored by Naraku's defeat. Inuyasha….he got his revenge on Naraku and was set free by Kikyo.
"And what do I get. I get pregnant by a man, a youkai, who has little love for humans and hanyous and is only letting me live in his house since honor demands it until he figures the house would be more served to banish me like he did to Inuyasha's mother.
"All he has to do is throw me in some corner, and my child once it is born, and just sit back and wait for me to die so he can properly mate, at which point he'll just banish our child to restore the honor to his house like he did with his own brother."
Her sobs racked her body as she replayed the conversation over and over in her mind, caught in an eternal loop of despair.
(POV)
Sesshomaru stood on the balcony of his study, looking out over his lands as he tried to digest all that Kagome now knew of him. His father had spoken to her. After ignoring his own cries for help he had answer a mere, human, miko.
It angered him and made him jealous all at the same time. The fact that his growing suspicions of Inuyasha's mother's arrival had been confirmed only made him feel worse. By banishing them he had brought even more dishonor upon himself.
"I find myself making more mistakes of late than is acceptable." He growled to himself. "My sense of pride is starting to cloud my better judgment."
He had no regrets bringing Kagome into his house. He had acted as honor demands, but now he was starting to curse the changes she had wrought in him. And the Kuromiko's words continued to course through his mind.
"Kagome, in a fit of rage, can control me. That is not acceptable. The blood bondage must be completed to eradicate it."
Usually both mates exchanged marks, but Kagome, being human, did not have the fangs to pierce his skin, nor would he ever allow himself to be marked by a mere human. By permitting his mate to mark him he would be accepting the fact that she was his equal in all ways and it was often years, decades, centuries even, after the initial mating before the female was giving permission to mark her mate.
Since he would not let her mark him he would just have to force her to drink some of his blood, although he was hesitant to do so. He was uncertain what effect drinking his blood would have on her and he most certainly didn't want to harm her or his child.
Everything resolved around that accursed jewel and wishing for his family to be true inuyoukai, although he was also starting to think more closely on that wish as will. He knew it would change Kagome and their child, and very likely Inuyasha would finally get his own wish, but what of Rin and Shippo.
Shippo was already a youkai and was Kagome's son in all but blood, just as Rin was his daughter in all but blood. Would his wish change them and would he, or they, want the change? He could wish for all of his blood to be full Inuyoukai, that would protect Rin and Shippo, but might not change Kagome. Only his child and Inuyasha would benefit from that.
And what of purifying the Jewel? Would Kagome be able to once she was a youkai, or would she lose her miko powers? He had no doubts that purifying the jewel was important.
"Sesshomaru-sama."
He blinked, having been so wrapped up in his thought he had not even detected her approach.
"Hai, Rin?"
She ran to him and latched onto his leg, crying loudly.
"I was so worried about you Sesshomaru-sama."
"I apologise for making you worry Rin."
Rin cleared her eyes up and then looked up at him, her eyes suddenly serious and frightening him a little.
"Did you and Kagome-sama fight?" She demanded.
"Huh?" He thought shocked. "Why do you ask?" He asked, his voice as emotionless as always.
"Kagome-sama is crying. She sounded very upset. Like she had nothing left." Rin answered sadly.
He marvelled at her. Sure she had said intelligent things like this in the past and it had always taken him by surprise, but this was a serious side of Rin he had never seen before.
"Sesshomaru,"
"No sama." He noted shocked.
"I am twelve now, and many girls my age are already looking for mates. I have a question. Will you always just love the carefree girl you saved, or will you love me as I grow up and change? I know you do not care for humans, but I am human and will most likely mate a human. But how can I when I would want your approval, and know I will never get it?"
The Rin before him suddenly scared him. He had never really considered her growing up and moving on. In his eyes she would always be the little girl who had tried to care for him and worshiped his every word.
"I have continued to act like a child to continue to gain your approval, however I am finding it hard to be what I no longer am. I have seen more traveling with you than any human child has ever seen, and seeing and growing up around such things causes maturity. I do not demand an answer now, for I know I have posted a difficult question for you. However, I do have one request."
"What is it Rin?" He asked, his mind numb in shock.
"Go to Kagome. She is your mate, intentional or not. She is like a mother to me and I can not bare to see her hurt. She has done so much to try and make a place for herself here, giving so much and demanding nothing in return. Now, with her quest finished, there is nothing left for her, and I think it is hurting her."
He nodded his head in understanding.
"And what will you be doing?"
Her innocent expression returned. "Why Sesshomaru-sama, Shippo-chan and I will be putting the finishing touches on your Return Party." She said innocently as she skipped away, humming softly.
That tune. The one his own mother had used to calm him down when he was a child. How did Rin know it? He put the puzzle aside as he walked through the mansion, having the misfortune to ran across Inuyasha.
"Why are you still here Hanyou?" Sesshomaru asked coldly, not in the mood to deal with his brother.
"Making sure Kagome is alright." Inuyasha answered calmly. "She is my sister after all." He added with a chuckle.
"You are blocking my way." Sesshomaru pointed out calmly. He had killed others for less.
"Noticed that did you?" Inuyasha smirked as he drew Tetsusaiga. "You know, according to Myoga-jiji, you have to care about humans to get past the barrier. So tell me, big brother, how were you able to wield Tetsusaiga?"
Sesshomaru didn't answer.
"Oh, come on. Even I know the answer to this one, or are you too damn prideful to say it out loud?"
Sesshomaru growled low in warning. Inuyasha ignored him.
"You could wield it BECAUSE you did so in defence of a human, a human you care about whether you like it or not. So tell me and look me in the eye when you say this. Tell me you don't care a shred about Kagome. That she is just a human you got saddled with due to your own lack of control on Midsummer's eve. Go on. Say it."
Sesshomaru remained silent.
Inuyasha smirked.
"You can't can you? Of course not. There is something special about Kagome and you've noticed it. It's not just her power either. It's her soul."
Inuyasha twirled Tetsusaiga around and held it hilt first towards him.
"Go on. Let us see how much you care for her. If you don't the blade will reject you. If you do, the blade will accept you."
Sesshomaru reached for the hilt, but hesitated.
"Your afraid." Inuyasha said in the moment of hesitation. "Afraid the blade will reject you. If you fear it, it will. Where is the confident bastard of a brother I know?"
Sesshomaru snarled as he grabbed the blade from Inuyasha's hand, half expecting the barrier to reject him. It didn't. He looked at the blade in shock.
"Shippo told me about Kagome." Inuyasha said in the silence. "I swear the damn brat was possessed. He was sounding an awful lot like dad."
"Possessed? Rin! That song! Mother!" He realized in shock.
"We ain't ever got along and I ain't ever forgave you for banishing my mother and I, but I'm willing to do almost anything for Kagome. She has done so much for me and I want to pay her back for. I'm doing this for her, not for you.
"You two need to have a talk and you are going to have to listen to her concerns. I want you to take Tetsusaiga with you while you talk to her. It will let her know that you're telling the truth when you tell her you care about her, and so help me you had better tell her or I'll break every damn bone in your worthless body.
"Now go talk to your mate before her friends and I decide you are unworthy of her and remove you from her life, our way, to set her free."
Inuyasha stepped aside.
Sesshomaru still stood there stunned until Inuyasha sighed, moved behind him, and pushed him a little, giving him a jump start.
"You'll pay for that later hanyou." He promised.
"Keh. Tetsusaiga says you wont." Inuyasha threw back with a smirk.
Sesshomaru couldn't help but to add a smile of his own to that remark as he walked determinedly to her room, sheathing Tetsusaiga at his side.
Even from the hall he could smell her tears and hear her heart wrenching sobs. He hadn't heard anyone cry that heart broken since he had told Inuyasha he was banished and his brother had broken down before him. He felt a sudden twinge of guilt and vowed to fix that mistake at a later date.
He almost opened her door and walked in, but stopped and knocked instead, unbelievingly repeating Inuyasha's earlier advice in his head about how to treat her.
"Who's there?" Kagome shouted, her voice cracked with strain.
"May I come in?" He asked.
Stunned silence.
"Why?" She asked.
"To talk."
"About what?"
"Everything."
Silence.
"Why didn't you just barge in?"
"It would have been rude and inappropriate." He answered.
"This from the same man who constantly barges in on me, throwing orders around."
"Might I come in?" He asked again, not raising to the barb.
"Why the hell not? It is YOUR house after all." She answered.
He hesitated, but did walk in, closing the door behind him and picking up Inuyasha's, Rin's Shippo's and half of the other occupants of his mansion's scents as they crowded around the door the moment it closed.
He couldn't help a small smile of amusement at that. Trust them to order them together only to spy on the conversation. He shook his head as he walked over to Kagome's room.
The sheets were crumbled and her face was red and puffy from crying, though her head was high and he could feel the sorrow and anger radiating from her eyes. Her back was to a wall and he was going to have to treat her like a frightened dog.
"Kagome." He started, then hesitated, unsure as to where to start.
"Hai, Seshsomaru-sama?" She asked coldly.
"Sesshomaru." He corrected.
"Huh?"
"Just Sesshomaru. The sama is unnecessary save formal functions."
"Alright then. What do you want to talk about Sesshomaru?"
"How are you feeling?" He started, figuring that was a neutral question to start with.
"Tired, but fine. My powers still haven't fully recovered."
He nodded his head as she asked him the same question in return.
"My wounds are healed, but my youki is still low."
She nodded her head, recognizing that he had admitted weakness to her and felt a small twinge of joy at having earned his trust enough for him to admit a weakness. Something that Inuyasha had never done until after it was too late and their goose was already in the oven.
She moved aside, silently inviting him to join her on her bed. He sat down, but made no move to get closer to her. In fact, he made sure to leave a comfortable space between them.
"Kagome." He started again. "I want to let you know how proud I was when I saw you standing up to Naraku and how proud I was of you to have fought him on your own. But, most of all, I want you to know how proud I was of you when you put my honour and pride above your own."
She looked at him in surprise. He allowed his mask of indifference to fall and the pride he felt in her to shine through. She smiled back at him, the light going into her eyes, permitting her stunning beauty to show through despite the puffiness of her eyes from crying.
"Arigato. Sesshomaru. I was prepared to die in that fight. I could live as a slave to Naraku, but I could never allow our child to be his. I would sooner die than lose to him."
He nodded his head in understanding, thinking the same thing.
"Kagome. I feel I must apologise for my actions during our stay in that human village. I acted….. improperly." He admitted. "I allowed my emotions to get the better of me."
Her smile widened and she actually moved over and hugged him. He stiffened in shock, before wrapping his arm around her and held her close.
"Arigato. You have no idea how much it means to me for you to say that. I know how hard it is to admit when you did something wrong."
She chuckled suddenly.
"You have to idea how many times I have sat Inuyasha in a fit of anger, only to regret it later and never had the courage to apologise."
"I'm sure he deserved it every time." He said, holding back his laughter as his sharp hearing picked up Inuyasha's quiet cursing from the other side of the door before Rin and Shippo 'shhh-ed' him.
"Perhaps." She agreed.
Inuyasha started cursing again and got 'shh-ed' by half the people listening.
He couldn't help but to chuckle now.
"What?" She asked.
"It is nothing, just remembering how wonderful it was to see Inuyasha's face hit the dirt every time you sat him."
"Hmmm. The Oswari necklace is…."
She stopped at the sound of a thud.
"What was that?" She asked.
"Nothing." He covered for his brother, holding back laughter as he picked up Inuyasha's cursing and just knew the others were holding the hanyou back from charging through the door.
He turned serious again. They needed to get this out of their system if there was any chance of a stable household.
"Are you happy here?" He asked.
Kagome sighed.
"A little." She admitted, knowing he would know if she lied. "Rin-chan and Shippo-chan need me and I just love playing with and teaching them. I get along with many of the servants and the duties assigned to me give me something to do."
"But?"
She sighed.
"I am human Sesshomaru. I need human friends and to feel human emotions. I miss my family, but I can get over that providing I can visit them, and whether you like it or not, Inuyasha and I are friends, I love him like a brother, and I do not condemn my friends for the sake of one man's pleasure, no matter who that man is. Miroku-sama, Kouga-kun, Sango-chan, Keade-bachan. They are my friends and while I know you do not approve of many of them, I will not push them away for your petty pride.
"To order me to never see them or speak with them again is just being petty. To lock me up in your mansion would destroy my spirit. I have responsibilities outside of being your mate and the lady of the western lands.
"I am the guardian of the Shikon no Tama and that is going to cause problems because sooner or later, some youkai, or horde of youkai, are going to come after it. As long as I have it, I will never know peace. Being your mate protects it, and me, from the petty youkai who would normally come after a weak human like myself, but who wouldn't dare mess with a taiyoukai. However," She hesitated.
"There will be others like Naraku." He finished. "And perhaps other Taiyoukai who would desire the jewels power."
"Hai." She admitted. "As long as I have the jewel, I will know no rest."
"We will know no rest." He corrected.
She looked up at him, catching and holding his golden eyes and seeing the promise in them.
"I will not lie to you Kagome."
He drew Tetsusaiga, the blade did not transform, but it did not reject him either.
"Tetsusaiga." She said in shock before her eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"Inuyasha let me borrow it for this purpose, and I plan on giving it back."
"Damn right your giving it back." He heard Inuyasha mumble from behind the door.
"Kagome. I will not lie. I do not love you. I do, however, respect you and I am proud to have you as my mate. I also trust you, more then I have ever trusted another for a very long time. While it is in my right to demand many things from you, I will refrain from doing so as a sign of my respect.
"I can not promise I will love our child, I can promise I will not shun it nor banish it from my house upon your leaving of this earth, as I foolishly did to my brother and his mother.
"I will let none harm our child and will make sure it is raised with the respect it deserves." He promised.
Her eyes widened in shock, then softened.
"That means a lot to me Sesshomaru."
"I will protect you and our child from any who would dare to harm you. Now than, as your mate it is my responsibility to make sure nothing is wrong, so tell me what is bothering you. There is more other than your feelings for me and your duty to the Shikon no Tama."
She sighed. Damn inuyoukai senses.
"Everyone got something out of Naraku's defeat. Sango-chan got Kohaku-kun back. Miroku-sama's kazanna is gone. Inuyasha got his revenge and was set free by Kikyo. You got your revenge for your pride. I got a future guarding a jewel highly sought after by every villain out there. The jewel destroyed Kikyo, and I fear it will do the same for me.
"This is going to sound selfish, but I feel, I don't know. Betrayed. No that's not it. Empty maybe. The only thing that kept me going, kept me looking to the future, was the day we defeated Naraku. Now that he is gone, I have nothing left to look forward to. I never figured what it was I was going to do now that the quest is over. I have no goals.
"I always figured I would go back to my time, finish school, go to college, get a job. Things like that. But, things are different now. School is finished and I never graduated with my friends like I thought I would. My hopes for any sort of career is gone, though I guess being the Lady of the Western Lands is a full time job.
"But, It is not a job I would consider doing the rest of my life. I feel like," She paused searching for the right words to use, "I feel like a mistress. Someone to keep your bed warm until I die and you can find a true mate. I feel like nothing more then a toy to amuse you for a few years of your life. I know you don't think of me this way, but I can't help but to feel like it."
"You feel lost." He provided for her.
"Hai. Lost."
"You fear you have nothing before you, but I think you are missing something important that is right before you. Something that will, undoubtedly, give you something to look forward to."
She looked at him confused.
Smiling, he pulled her into his lap and turned her around so he was resting his head on hers. He rubbed her stomach slowly.
She blinked in shock. How could she have forgotten that? Come to think of it, how could she have forgotten to tell her family. Then again, she was concentrating on keeping Sesshomaru pacified and preventing him from killing every last person who crossed him, which was almost every person they had come across.
"Oh kami!" She shot up.
"What?" He asked concerned.
"I never told my mother I was with child. Kami, she will want to know she is going to have a grandchild and I completely forgot when we were there."
He blinked at her. Human's are such fickle creatures, constantly changing their thoughts and emotions in a blink of an eye.
"Does it mean a lot to you?"
"Hai."
"Then we will go to visit her in a few days, after the children's return party."
Kagome chuckled.
"I apologise for that. I gave them the idea to keep them distracted." She sighed.
"I will suffer whatever indignities they have planned in order to pay them back."
"Good. Because I would really hate to have to force you. But look on the up side," she smiled up at him, "I'll be right there beside you looking just as foolish."
He smiled back down at her. "Then let us be fools together."
She chuckled. The sound of her door crashing in made her jump in surprise and clutch onto him in fear. Her fear was quickly replaced by an onslaught of anger, embarrassment, and amusement.
"Oswari." She shouted, hearing the satisfying sound of Inuyasha hitting the ground.
She marched out of her bedroom, Sesshomaru right beside her. By the time she made it out, only Inuyasha was left. The others had quickly disappeared the moment the door had fallen in. All but Shippo anyway.
"Gomen Kagome." Shippo apologized, helping Inuyasha stand up. "Inuyasha and I were goofing around and we kind of fell into your door."
Kagome blinked.
"Oh. Gomen Inuyasha."
Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at Shippo, surprised the Kitsune had covered for his brother.
"Keh." Inuyasha grunted.
Kagome smiled and kissed him on the cheek. His eyes widened in surprise.
"I'm going to get cleaned up then properly thank the other lords and ladies for their help." She left him standing there.
Sesshomaru handed Inuyasha back his sword before retreating to his study to catch up on missed work.
"Arigato, Shippo." Inuyasha said as the two of them walked down the hall.
"No sweat Inuyasha. Can you help Rin and I with the return ceremony?"
Inuyasha was about to say no, but he did owe the kid one. Besides, it wasn't like he had anything else to do around here and it would help chase off the bad memories of this place.
(break)
"I would like to thank all everyone, on behalf of Sesshomaru-sama and myself, for your assistance with the hanyou Naraku and for caring for us during our injuries. I would like to thank Shippo-chan and Rin-chan, for putting on this event, and would like to thank Sekira and Inuyasha for also offering their assistance." Kagome bowed to their guest as she sat back down next to Sesshomaru.
Rin and Shippo had done a great job. She had almost expected something childish and was completely surprised when the kids had made it rather formal, though they did make sure to add their own childish flair.
Kagome was dressed in a new kimono to replace the one Naraku had destroyed. Rin knew it was Sesshomaru's favourite and made sure it would be replaced for this event. She had also made sure to pick the flowers artfully braided into Kagome's hair by Sekira.
The hall was decorated with flowers, butterflies, and other such beautiful things. Of course, keeping with the family theme, white dogs were also playing amongst them. Kagome and Sesshomaru sat alone at a head table. The other three lords and their ladies sat at the table to their direct right while Inuyasha, Shippo, Rin, Sekira, and Jaken sat at the table on their left.
Dinner was an astounding variety of both youkai and human food. So far everything seemed formal enough that Kagome was beginning to relax, though Sesshomaru was as stiff as a board. Then again, she didn't notice the sly glances Shippo, Rin and Inuyasha were sharing.
Sesshomaru was not wearing his usual royal robes. No, the children had dressed him up in something different. Still, he looked good in it, he had to admit. And he could not have agreed more with the kimono they had chosen for Kagome.
He was wearing a light blue outfit with golden phoenix's in flight the exact same color of his eyes. Both of them were wearing headbands, his golden, hers storm grey. Both were set with gems, his amber, hers smoky quartz.
Dinner was served and both of them ate with dignity while the children and Inuyasha ate with barely passing grace. It was halfway through dinner when the 'entertainment' began.
"My lords and ladies." Inuyasha said as he stood up, also dressed elegantly for a change.
Indeed, the hanyou was wearing a white kimono with golden leaves on it that matched his eyes. Rin and Shippo were also wearing nice kimono's, though not as expensive or elegant. Rin's was in black with white birds and Shippo's was a ruby red with emerald dragons.
The lords and ladies looked to him. He gazed back at them, surprised to see respect and attentiveness in their eyes instead of the hatred and contempt he usually saw. Then again, they had come to Kagome's call so they couldn't be that bad if they helped a human they barely knew.
Now that he had the entire assembly attention, he felt a twinge of fear stir within him. He was most certainly not use to addressing an audience, let alone one that was paying respectful attention to him.
"Hell, if Sesshomaru can do it, so can I." He thought determinedly. "I would like to thank you for attending our Return Party, so graciously put together and planned by Shippo and Rin."
"Wow, never knew the hanyou knew such a long word like graciously, let alone what it meant." Sesshomaru thought as Inuyasha continued and the two children beamed and puffed out their chests in pride.
"We have many different things planned this evening for your delight, though I am sure my brother won't enjoy half of them."
That got the crowd laughing, and earned him a scowl from his brother and a chuckle from Kagome, who placed her hand on Sesshomaru's shoulder to calm him down.
"And as much as Sesshomaru isn't going to enjoy them, I know Kagome is going to hate them just as much."
"I should punish you for this Inuyasha, but I understand that I owe you and the children a lot, so please commence with our torture." Kagome said with a chuckle.
Inuyasha smirked and she felt a twinge of fear.
"What have you planned?" She demanded.
He took a book out of his robe and showed it to her.
"Oh kami." She groaned. "When did you get that?"
"It was in your bag. You kind of left that behind."
"What is it?" Sesshomaru asked apprehensively.
"A book of games and such for parties. They are suppose to be fun, but…. very embarrassing." She explained.
"How embarrassing?"
Several hours later had him just about ready to kill Inuyasha and the children for the things they had to do. The women all enjoyed it, but the men, they would never outlive this embarrassment.
He wasn't sure what had been worse, the embarrassment, or Inuyasha's constant smirk that refused to leave his face. The hanyou was so dead once this was over, rather Kagome liked it or not. There was no way he was letting the hanyou get away with this.
It was late by the time they retired for the evening. Kagome followed him to his room, bypassing her own. She helped him undress before undressing herself and joining him in their shared bed.
"You enjoyed yourself." He commented, finally noticing the beaming smile on her face and the dancing light in her eyes.
"Very much so, though I will make sure to subdue Inuyasha so you can kill him a few times." She chuckled.
She moved over to him, nestling up against him. He stared down at her.
"I missed your warmth." She murmured, rubbing up against him.
Smiling, he pulled her closer and took a strong whiff of her scent.
"I missed your scent." He admitted.
She smiled and twisted in his arm to look up at him. His eyes, such an intense gold. She snuggled against him again and lost herself to sleep. He rested his head above hers and also drifted off to sleep.
No. He did not love her, but he did respect her, and that was more than he had ever expected to find in a mate.