This following little story was originally a one-shot Christmas present for a certain person, two years ago. Then it became the inspiration for Strings. Originally, it was going to be a part of Strings, but now Strings is heading in a different direction for the Christmas time, and a different direction period. Now, it does have a lot of Kur/Kei (it was a present for Rose, after all), but I thought I'd show you all the original inspiration for Strings. Horrible cliche as parts of it are. And no, not all the pairings in this can be considered Strings pairings. Things have changed, as I said.
Oh, and there is indications of what happens near the end of Yu Yu Hakusho in here, though they aren't really noticeable. So, possible spoiler alert if you don't know what happens at the end of Chapter Black and after. Do tell me about any errors and such, especially considering how many times I've editted it.
Also, because I unashamedly will promote myself, I do have a general IyxYYh crossover forum her on I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho or Inuyasha.
/.../
Under the Mistletoe
by Natala
Keiko turned the rose in her hand over a few times, bringing it to her nose with a contented sigh. The boy beside her leaned back on the bench, studying her with a proud look in his eyes. Proud of her, for coming back to herself, and proud of himself for making her happy again. After all, it was Christmas Eve, and no one should be unhappy on Christmas Eve.
Keiko looked up at him, the smile shining through her eyes. "It's red today Kurama-kun. Isn't that going backwards a bit? You gave me a red one the first time."
Kurama shook his head, forcing himself to sigh in exasperation, though the happiness shone through no matter what he did. "It was dark red then Keiko. Almost black. Like your mood. Each time was to signify what moods or emotions I thought you, or myself, would have that day. That's why I started at the darker colors."
Keiko hid a triumphant grin. He had explained this before, but had only said her emotions. If he was adding himself to the list, then perhaps there was hope after all. After all, the rose was red today, with the edges of the petals pink. The red for love, the pink for romance. She hoped she wasn't looking too much into this. After all, she had every right to hope.
Kurama's head turned, watching the darkening sky and Keiko saw how he suddenly tensed. She frowned, but shrugged it off and stood up, smiling as Kurama rose beside her. "So, where are we going today? You always take me somewhere on the day you give me a new rose."
Kurama smiled down at her, and extended his hand. "Yes, I am taking you somewhere today. It's only a couple of minutes away and I guarantee you won't be expecting it."
Keiko put her hand trustingly in his own, delighting in the warmth as he began to leader her deeper into the park. She hoped it wouldn't take that long today, she wanted to visit all their friends before she went home. She knew the 'rose days' as she called them were special, but it was Christmas Eve.
"We have to get there right at sunset. Besides the view, that's when it starts. We may be there awhile, but don't worry about the cold. It has all been set up." Kurama seemed oblivious to her slight frown or her dragging feet and she sighed. Usually Kurama picked right up on the slightest change in her mood, just as she did for him. Seiko glanced up at the darkening sky and then back at Kurama.
"We have to hurry then. The suns beginning to set already." Keiko frowned as Kurama just smiled and wanted to balk as the warning signs she'd seen before came into view. This was a part of the park that was dead, supposedly a few weeks ago some poison had been spilled. Her mind paused in processing this, as this part of the park definitely didn't look dead. She frowned suspiciously at Kurama.
Kurama grinned at her, emerald eyes briefly looking into hers before he stopped, tugging her to stand in front of him. "There is no need to hurry. We're here."
"What? Oh... Oh my." Keiko held her breath, afraid that if she let it out the scene before her would disappear forever. None of this looked dead. In fact, it looked livelier than anything else in the park did. Keiko's eyes traveled on and widened with shock with everything she saw.
A fir tree stood tall in the middle of the clearing, gifts nestled underneath its welcoming branches. Glowing and blinking Christmas lights adorned the tree, twisting their way upwards to the top where a decoration had been placed. Small ornaments had been placed at sporadic intervals, weaving their way around the tree and avoiding the silver garland that had two gold balls every few feet. Oddly, it reminded Keiko of Kurama's demon form.
The lake, which was suspiciously absent of the pollution that it was rumored to have. Keiko had a suspicion that her favorite fox boy had made sure no one was around here while he set this up. The waters were clear, reflecting the purple and orange of the sunset, along with the candlelight floating on its surface. The candles were set on miniature black boats, each one holding a white candle as they lit up the lake. Keiko could only imagine what it would look like once the sun truly set.
Cherry tree's lined the clearing, at each of the two entrances two intertwined to create an archway above the entryway. Snow and impossibly blooming cherry blossoms intermixed as they fell softly to the ground. Bushes with red berries were set firmly between each cherry trunk, making the clearing seem cozy and in it's own way, private.
Keiko watched the snow fall in awe, wondering how he did it. She could see all the plants being green and the cherry trees blossoming, but the boats and snow? She turned to him, brown eyes meeting green as she stepped towards him and wound her arms about him. She could sense his anxiousness. She would have laughed if she didn't know any better. He seemed so confident, but was just as nervous to have her approve his work as she would have been.
"Thank you. It's beautiful." Keiko felt Kurama relax at her words and buried her head briefly in his chest before ending the embrace and stepping back. He looked a bit embarrassed, but the happiest she had seen him in weeks. In fact, the last few weeks he had seemed extra tired. At least now she knew why.
"I hope you don't mind, but I had some help, and took the liberty of inviting...well...everyone." Keiko saw him tense up again and gave him a reassuring smile while her mind danced in glee. She wouldn't have to visit everyone; they would all be here!
"How did you manage to make it snow?" After Kurama waved a hand in the direction of Yukina, who sat looking at the candlelit boats with childlike glee, Keiko felt a bit foolish.
"I asked Yukina and Hiei to help with the setting. Though, we almost didn't have a tree. I had to ask someone else for help there. I know you don't really like seeing her, but I thought it was time for you two to get along." Kurama was firm on this, he wanted Keiko and Kagome to get along. Kagome hated the fact that Keiko had been upset when she and Yusuke had gotten together, and had gone out of her way to help Kurama with finding seeds. A fir tree had been impossible to find, and Kagome had apparently called in a favor to get even a young one. Kurama remembered spending most of the day making it grow to the right height, and that had been only the day before last.
Keiko sighed, but shrugged her shoulders. To be truthful, Keiko had been more furious at herself than Kagome. She had broken up with Yusuke, but she was glad for it now. There was no way she could have stayed with him and watch as she grew old and he stayed looking like a teenager. "It's fine Kurama, I think you're right. I should probably give her a chance. She seems like such a nice person."
Speaking of Kagome, Keiko raised an eyebrow as she saw the girl sneaking around over Kurama's shoulder. She had what looked oddly like mistletoe in her hand and was setting it up in some of the trees that lined the clearing and in a few trees that stood near the lake. Kagome saw Keiko watching her and smiled impishly, putting one finger to her mouth in a shushing motion.
Keiko put a hand over her mouth to stifle her giggle as Kurama looked over to see Kagome doing nothing but appearing to be anxiously waiting for Yusuke. Yes, she seemed like a nice person indeed.
Kurama cleared his throat, looking between Keiko and Kagome suspiciously. "I'll wait for our other guests at the other entrance. Why don't you go talk to her?" Kurama let go of her hand that he had been holding the whole time, surprised by how disappointed he was at the lack of warmth.
Keiko nodded, slipping by Kurama and walking towards the raven-haired girl. "Hello Kagome."
"Hi Keiko. He didn't notice did he?" Keiko smiled, shaking her head.
"No, he didn't notice. I don't think anyone did." Kagome looked relieved at her words, then grinned cheerily.
"I don't know about that. Our lively Christmas decoration might have." Keiko followed Kagome's finger to the fir tree, narrowing her eyes at the indicated spots. Glowing red eyes peered through the branches, watching Yukina's snow fall. Keiko stifled a giggle, hearing Kagome do the same.
"Maybe Hiei's really one of Santa's elves," Keiko suggested. Both girls began laughing and Kurama and the newly arrived Yusuke both looked towards them in astonishment. Kagome and Keiko both ignored the looks, instead looking towards the table placed in between the lake and the tree, which Botan and a girl Keiko didn't know were setting.
"Who's that?" Keiko almost instantly regretted the question as Kagome sighed and her whole demeanor changed to sad and almost depressed.
"That's Sango. The last time I went to the well, she was with me. We both fell through; she had tried to grab onto me. She got stuck here. The well no longer works. She was getting better, but recently she seems to be regressing. She won't tell me why either. Her and Shippo are the only ones I have left from the feudal era. Though, Shippo's grown up and has a crush of his own." A smile hovered on Kagome's face as Keiko looked towards the wild looking kitsune. His hair was as brushed as it ever was; not that it mattered since it seemed to fall in wild silky waves. It wasn't smooth like Youko's seeming to be rougher, like his tail. Shippo's gaze was firmly upon Botan who was carrying a salad to the table.
"Oh my. Does Botan know?"
"She knows about as much as Sango knows that Hiei stopped staring at the snow and started staring at her the second she came into view," Kagome replied calmly. Keiko's eyes flew to the tree, finding to her astonishment that Hiei was indeed staring at the former citizen of Sengoku Jidai.
"That why you were putting up so much mistletoe?" Keiko asked, looking meaningfully at the leaves set across the clearing and near the table.
"That, and I wanted to see you and Kurama kiss at least once." Keiko's mouth opened in astonishment. How the heck did this girl know? Was she that obvious? Did everyone know?
"Calm down. Let's go eat, I doubt anyone else knows how badly you two want each other at the moment." Keiko followed the former shard hunter to the table. The girls separated, Kagome weaving around the table to talk to Yusuke and Keiko settling in a seat beside Kurama. Keiko watched in amusement as Kagome managed to manipulate Yusuke backwards until they were under mistletoe. Now it was only a matter of time until...
"Mama, you and Yusuke are under mistletoe! You know what that means!" Shippo grinned as Kagome managed to blush in embarrassment along with Yusuke, knowing his adopted mother was faking the blush. Shippo rolled his eyes as the couple's lips met and they seemed to forget anyone was watching.
Keiko giggled, finding no pain at the touching scene. In fact, she was a bit happy for her friend. Both her childhood one and her newly formed one. Finally, it was the girl Sango, with a grin on her face, who split them apart. "All right you two, you can do that later. The rest of us would like to have our dinner without throwing up."
Kagome and Yusuke broke apart and Kagome and Keiko exchanged quick grins, though Kagome seemed to be really blushing now while Yusuke was smirking proudly. Keiko shrugged, then turned and smiled as Kurama looked between her and Kagome oddly.
"You two seem to be getting along a lot better than I thought you would," Kurama murmured in a low whisper to her ear. Keiko tried to ignore the sensation of his breath tickling her and gave him a smug smile.
"Us? We just clicked I suppose." It had absolutely nothing to do with that Kagome was determined to have her and Kurama kiss. The thrill that went through her also wasn't caused by the thought of previously mentioned situation. No, she was just a friendly girl who never held a grudge.
"Mmm-Hmm. I guess I win again then." Kurama grinned at her and she found herself grinning playfully back at him.
"I suppose you do. Maybe later we'll decide what your prize will be." Mischievous brown eyes met scheming green ones.
"I think I already know what I want for a prize," he murmured playfully, but there was an undertone of seriousness, and if she wasn't mistaken he was starting to nuzzle into her hair. She leaned into it, tilting her head slightly. 'Maybe mistletoe won't be needed after all,' Keiko thought as she felt Kurama's warm breath on her face. They were broken apart suddenly by Hiei's dry voice, and if thoughts could kill, Keiko's and Kurama's combined thoughts would have killed Hiei many times over.
"If you two are done flirting, can we stop with the disgustingly touching scenes and have some food?" Keiko pouted and couldn't help the vicious thought that flitted through her mind. 'He's just jealous because Sango hasn't shown any interest in him.'
Hiei had been striding smoothly towards a seat when he suddenly stumbled, shock briefly written across his face. Keiko's mouth opened in horror. Stupid mind reading fire apparition!
Kurama looked mildly curious as his usually graceful friend almost fell on his face. He could hear Kuwabara laughing about it nearby and Yusuke smothering snickers. What confused him was the horror stricken and slightly ashamed look on Keiko's face, as well as Hiei's openly shocked face briefly before he stumbled. When Hiei began glaring daggers at Keiko, Kurama smirked, guessing he had been reading Keiko's thoughts.
Hiei stiffly walked to a seat at the other end of the table, shortly joined by Sango. Kurama noticed Kagome and Keiko exchange another look and Kagome smirking. "What are you two scheming?"
Kurama quickly frowned as he glanced over to where Yusuke and Kagome had kissed. "And where did that mistletoe come from anyway?"
Keiko shrugged, managing to look completely innocent. "I have no idea. Perhaps one of the others brought some for laughs. Besides, stop searching for flaws in your little gift and get to eating."
Kurama chuckled and obediently began eating the food. Sango and Botan had helped prepare it, oddly helped by Kuwabara and Yusuke. Oddly enough, the two boys had proved to be suitable cooks, though Yusuke had threatened to kill them if they even whispered it to anyone else.
Botan and Shippo chatted as the walked to the table. Suddenly Botan stumbled and Shippo caught her. "I should just fly everywhere. Stupid clumsy me."
Keiko suddenly giggled, looking above the tailed kitsune and Botan's head. "You two. Look up."
Shippo looked up, barely hiding his glee. Botan flushed with embarrassment, and went forward for a quick peck. Shippo turned his head, capturing her lips with his own. Botan's gasp was muffled as she melted into the kitsune's embrace. No one caught Kagome's smug smirk as her hands stopped glowing and the tree root that had tripped Botan slid back into the earth.
Cheers came up from the other girls as well as some snickers from Yusuke. Kagome raised an eyebrow at him. "You know, you have no right to laugh at them."
Yusuke smirked at her. "Says you. But I don't know, I'm sure you can always trade notes with Botan later and find out who has the right to laugh."
Kagome blushed bright red and attempted to glare at him. When he just kept smirking she turned away to look at Shippo and Botan separating, not bothering to acknowledge Yusuke's knowing chuckle. Stupid, arrogant, and oh-so-right boyfriend.
Shippo held fast to Botan after they pulled apart, seeing her dazed look. He had that look a bit himself. He leaned in to whisper in her ear. Keiko strained her ears to catch what was said but all she caught was Botan's giggle and seeing her whisper back. Kitsune and Grim Reaper separated, both grinning like fools as they went to sit down at the table.
As Botan sat next to Keiko, the brown haired girl leaned over and whispered in her ear. "What he say?"
"He asked me out for New Year's Eve. I said yes." Botan grinned, her eyes having that dreamy look that Keiko recognized as one she sometimes had begun to get recently when she thought of Kurama. Keiko grinned.
"Well, that's one couple down." Botan looked at her suspiciously but Keiko only grinned, a grin echoed on Kagome's face, as she evidently had no qualms about eaves dropping.
"Two to go. Though even mistletoe might not be enough for one couple," Kagome pointed out, looking where Hiei and Sango sat. Kagome shrugged, then grabbed Yusuke and pulled him off to a chair across from Hiei.
"Time for us to eat too!" Kagome settled herself across from Sango, immediately drawing the other girl into a conversation with obviously mocking comments from Yusuke. Hiei's only interest seemed to be watching Sango, and the feudal era refugee seemed oblivious. Keiko sighed, watching the couple and couple-to-be. Kurama looked at her quizzically, his plate half finished. Then he glanced at her plate and frowned.
"Keiko, after telling me to eat, shouldn't you do the same thing?" Keiko's gaze flew to her plate as Shippo and Botan settled across from them. Yukina sat next to Hiei, in between him and Kurama, and Kuwabara sat across from her. Everyone seemed to be eating with her. She blushed and lowered her utensils to eat.
"Sorry Kurama. I was caught up in... Uh..."
"Planning how to get various couple under the mistletoe?" Kurama's amusement was plain and she caught a brief image of his silky red locks as he leaned forward to try to turn her head. She hid her blushing by turning her head farther, only to see Botan grinning at her from across the table.
"I have to wonder," Kurama began to say in a purring whisper, "if we're one of those couples?" Keiko almost choked and almost against her will her gaze moved to Kurama, who was regarding her with a curious and if she was correct, hopeful gaze. Suddenly Keiko simply smiled and looked up at him.
"You'll see." Kurama's surprise was obvious at her calm answer, and she bent to finish her meal under the muffled snickers and giggles from Botan and Shippo.
-
After dinner everyone chatted for awhile, breaking off into couples before whatever activity Kurama had planned next began. An enraged shout came from Hiei when Yukina and Kuwabara had stopped to talk, and had found themselves under the mistletoe. Oddly, (at least for the boys watching) it was Sango who stopped the fire apparition from killing Kuwabara, though the rest of the guests managed to find Yukina and Kuwabara a spot as far away from Hiei as possible to talk. The kiss had only lasted an instant, and in fact both had blushed afterwards, but Hiei seemed intent on killing Kuwabara, though the ice apparition and Kuwabara were oblivious to this.
Finally, Keiko giggled as she watched Kagome's frustration grow. Sango and Hiei seemed to have an instinct of where the mistletoe was. Suddenly Kagome's gaze swung to them, and raised an eyebrow at their positions. Keiko looked away, pretending not to notice that somewhere over the last half hour as they sat together that her head had ended up on Kurama's shoulder and his arm had snaked around her waist. She almost wished that some of Kagome's mistletoe was nearby, just for the excuse.
"They'll be dancing soon," Kurama stated quietly, shifting them slightly to face the fir tree, the most lighted spot in the clearing, besides the lake, which was glowing brightly with candlelight.
"Really? This is going to be perfect then. It already looks perfect. The lake is wonderful, and the trees interspersed between the cherry trees look wonderful. What are they?" Kurama followed Keiko's gaze to trees that had been planted every four cherry trees.
"Kagome and Shippo got them. Kagome planted them. For some reason they reacted oddly to my spirit energy. But, there's nothing dangerous or deadly about them, so I guess it was just a fluke." Keiko nodded, but eyed each tree in turn, finding mistletoe in everyone. There was mistletoe in others too of course, but the other bits were scattered around. There was mistletoe under every one of those strange trees, which seemed to have bluish brown bark. Keiko's eyes narrowed suspiciously, even as Kurama shifted and got up.
Keiko almost sighed at the loss of warmth, before Kurama's hand was in front of her. She took it automatically, pushing herself up as he pulled her up. They began walking, neither letting go of the others hand. Suddenly she felt Kurama tense and swung her gaze around to see him staring at the ground with narrowed eyes. "I could have sworn I just saw a root of this tree move."
Keiko studied the ground too, seeing that there was indeed a root there, but it was barely above ground level. She opened her mouth to shrug it off as a trick of the light glancing off the snow, when Hiei, who had once interrupted a similar situation, interrupted them again, but Keiko had no qualms about him interrupting this time. "Fox. You're under the kissing branch."
"It's called mistletoe. But, he's right, you two are under it." Even as Sango added to Hiei's statement, she was shooting Kagome an amused look. Keiko had no more time to think of that as her gaze was automatically drawn upwards. Indeed, the plant hung above them, tiny snowflakes clinging to the branch and making it shimmer.
Keiko glanced at Kurama, studying his eyes in an attempt to read the emotions. She couldn't read the emotions and she bit her lip, suddenly nervous. What if she had been wrong? What if he didn't like her like that? Kurama turned and glanced down at her, seeing her expression, and jumped to conclusions while trying not to allow the hurt to seep into his voice.
"We don't have to you know, it's just a silly tradition. If you don't want to..." Kurama stopped, wondering what he'd done wrong as Keiko's eyes narrowed. That was her determined look, he knew it well. But what was she determined to do? Had he said something wrong?
Keiko almost smiled at the confusion in Kurama's eyes. Briefly glancing over Kurama's shoulder she saw Botan and Kagome both making encouraging movements. Finally she locked both her hands in Kurama's and leaned upwards. She allowed herself a moment to study his face before closing her eyes and tilting her head to gently press her lips to his. After a moment when he hadn't responded she felt her stomach knot and forced the tears not to come as she slowly started to break the kiss.
Kurama was stunned when she had actually kissed him, and had drifted away with the feeling. Yet, now she was pulling back. Why? Had he... Oh! You didn't kiss her back you moron!
Kurama almost growled at the unwanted thought in his head before clinging to Keiko's hands and pulling her back in, then moving his hand to rest on her upper arms, tilting his head to return the kiss she had given him. He felt her gasp in surprise, and felt Youko's satisfied reaction in the back of his head. Finally! I was wondering how long it would take before you would take steps to claim her.
Kurama slowly pulled back from the kiss, feeling Keiko cling to him. He grinned inwardly. It had only been a chaste kiss this time, despite what Youko wanted. He bit back a sigh as Keiko took a step back from him, blushing and releasing his arms. He ignored the obvious attempt to step away and held on. "We should have done that before."
Kurama grinned as she blushed more at his statement. "I hope we do it many more times too," He practically purred, leaning his head down near her ear. He saw Keiko's eyes widen as he tickled her ear with his breath.
"Me too," she whispered. She heard a snicker from Shippo and turned fully crimson, realizing that everyone was watching. Kurama slid one hand down, taking her hand in his and moving them from underneath the mistletoe. The two dared to look at the crowd and Keiko's eyes narrowed as she saw Sango passing money to a smirking Kagome and Botan.
"You three weren't betting on this were you?" Kurama asked suspiciously. He on the other hand, was watching the boys pass around money.
"Damn it Kagome, I'm beginning to hate your trees. I couldn't believe Shippo even found any." Despite Kagome's frantic motions Sango kept speaking, and Shippo winced as everyone, even Yusuke, turned their attention to Kagome at that statement.
"What about the trees, Kagome?" Kurama asked quietly.
Sango stared at him, then began giggling. Kagome's face brightened upon hearing the sound, as did Shippo's. Impulsively, Kagome hugged Sango. "You're laughing!"
Sango look stunned, then sighed. "Have I really been that withdrawn? But, you know, you're avoiding Kurama's question. I really want to see how you get out of this one."
"It wouldn't have anything to do with how I saw the tree root move, would it?" Kurama asked suspiciously. Kagome's face turned red and that was answer enough for him, while Yusuke looked a bit incredulous.
"You set the mistletoe?" Everyone stared at Yusuke as he said that.
"Where have you been Yusuke? Everyone else figured that out awhile ago." Botan raised an eyebrow at Yusuke and he crossed his arms and gave a trademark glare.
"Some of it. I had Yukina set some too, since she would be here earliest. I just set the ones on the trees."
"The trees that are brimming with pure energy that only, say, a miko could manipulate?" Yusuke glared at Kagome as he asked. She grinned impishly at him.
"Why yes, I do believe those are the trees." Kurama stared at Kagome as she spoke back to Yusuke before turning to look at the tree that he had kissed Keiko under. Yusuke was right, there was a strange energy about the tree, much like the energy about the miko.
"Where did these trees come from?" Keiko giggled at Kurama's fascinated looks before Shippo piped up.
"The Makai. They were rare during the feudal era, but I took some seeds to the Makai with me and I live in a grove of them now. Or I did. It'll take a hundred years to get a good sized grove of trees on the shrine. Unlike you, I'm all about illusions and foxfire." Shippo sighed, apparently mourning his lost grove of trees. Botan looked thoughtfully at Kurama. Kurama met her eyes and smiled, giving a slight nod.
"You'll have to explain about the trees some more later. There is dancing to be done." Kurama nodded to another path, where two bushes suddenly moved aside. Kurama smirked at the stunned expressions.
The couples walked off two at a time, Yusuke and Kagome pushing Kuwabara and Yukina to the path first when it seemed Hiei was going to be last. A growl split the air and Keiko caught Yusuke smirking at Hiei before Kagome rolled her eyes and grasped Yusuke's hand, pulling him to the path before Hiei decided a burnt Toushin was in order.
Shippo and Botan went forward, followed by Keiko and Kurama, whose hands had yet to separate. Keiko strained her hearing, but didn't hear the other two following. Keiko turned her head over her shoulder, watching Sango and Hiei stand at the edge of the path, beginning to walk down the path, neither making any amount of noise as they walked. Keiko sighed, that would be why she hadn't heard anything.
Keiko blinked at the wooden floor just placed in the middle of a smaller clearing. It had a cloth rook ten feet over it, but that was the only covering, it was all empty air. Strangely, she wasn't cold.
Keiko paused to look at everyone else, seeing that Yusuke was still put out at Kagome. Kagome said something and he growled. Keiko winced, but saw Kagome just rolled her eyes. Keiko watched the scene in interest as Kagome stopped and gave Yusuke a pleading look. Yusuke crossed his arms. Kagome sighed, then leaned in and kissed him.
Kurama chuckled, watching the same thing. Apparently Yusuke quickly forgot about her scheming when she kissed him. Though he was beginning to wonder how long they were going at. Yusuke's hands and gone around Kagome's waist while Kagome's hands went around his neck and they deepened the kiss.
"Mother! Do you want me to tell Grandmother your kissing Yusuke out in the middle of a forest?" Shippo grinned and from behind Keiko and Kurama Sango snickered.
"She'd probably be glad. After all, she does want grandchildren." This broke Kagome and Yusuke apart in a hurry, Yusuke practically jumping back and both of them scowled, turning the twin scowls full force on Sango. Kagome's scowl quickly turned into a smirk and Keiko saw a look of dread appear on Sango's face.
"Oh Sango," Kagome began in a sing song voice. "Look above your head!"
Sango and Hiei both looked up simultaneously and Kurama was shocked to see a quick smirk appear on Hiei's face before it quickly disappeared. The stoic fire apparition simply turned towards Sango and waited. Sango was still staring up at the mistletoe.
Finally a squeal came from Kagome when the two did kiss. If Keiko had thought Yusuke and Kagome's kiss was bad, she was blushing horribly just by watching Sango and Hiei. They practically looked like they were going to take each other right there!
"You see, this is what happens when two people try to hide their feelings for months at a time because they don't think they ever should have a relationship. Again in Sango's case. And Aunt Sango, can you stop? Get a room," Shippo ended in an overly loud mutter that broke the two apart, and Kurama winced at the emotions in Hiei's eyes. The fire apparition thought he shouldn't have done that, especially to a 'ningen wench.'
"Shippo. My favorite kitsune. Run you insufferable little brat!" She didn't have her boomerang, Kagome insisting that she wouldn't need it, but that had stopped her from carrying her katana. Shippo's eyes widened and he sprang away from Botan with a yelp as the youkai exterminator was there in front of him with katana extended.
"Mama! Aunt Sango's trying to kill me!" Kagome groaned at the scene in front of her. She began muttering under her breath.
"500 years for him and across time and a couple a years for her. Yet they still manage to act like they did when we all met. Glad Miroku's not here." With a final grumble, Kagome stood up, and reached out one hand to catch Sango.
"Stop that. And Shippo, You're over 50o years old! You'd think you'd know how Sango reacts by now and be mature enough to curb your instincts!" Shippo grinned as his 'mother' scolded him, then moved into his little boy smile. It didn't matter how big he was; he could still get her to give in. Kitsune charm helped too.
"But...Mama...she started it!" Botan looked on in surprise and amusement, barely holding in a giggle as the centuries-old-kitsune was scolded and forgiven by his barely-out-of-high school mother.
Kagome sighed as she got the look, a sigh of defeat. "Sango won't try to kill you for saying stupid things and you won't make any more comments. Agreed?"
Shippo and Sango both agreed and then Sango scowled, realizing she now had nothing to do to take her mind and everyone else's attention away from the fact that she and Hiei had just shared a passionate kiss that she could still feel heat radiating from. She resisted the urge to touch her lips to see if it had been real. She frowned slightly, Hiei hadn't really seemed to mind the kiss much, but now he was avoiding looking at her.
Kurama observed the woman and his friend and sighed. This was a party. He wasn't going to sort that out now. It wasn't his to sort out either "All right, can someone start the music?"
As if one cue three people all leapt for the equipment and Keiko looked startled. Kurama squeezed her hand and smiled at her encouragingly. Those three would sort it out, they always did.
"Get off me, Damnit!"
"Ouch! That's my back! Mama, what are you-"
Both Shippo was muffled as Kagome leapt off his back to the equipment, choosing what she wanted before her boyfriend and adopted son could get to it. She looked back at them sweetly as the music started.
"No changing the music boys, or you'll both be punished." Shippo sighed and admitted defeat. He practically bounded to Botan, holding out one hand. She grinned and accepted it and they went out into the dance floor. Keiko and Kurama walked out onto the wooden floor, trying to ignore Kagome and Yusuke.
"Punish me? And how exactly would you do that, Kagome? Because we all remember how well that turned out the last time you tried to punish me." By the smug smirk on Yusuke's face and the mix of anger and embarrassment on Kagome's face, Kurama decided to stop eavesdropping, since he was probably better off not knowing.
The couples, except for Sango and Hiei, danced with each other mostly, though they passed each other around. Finally Kurama felt Keiko in his arms again and relaxed. He was startled when she gently pressed their lips together instead of simply saying hello, and found himself smiling contentedly when he saw her blushing but happy face in front of him. Youko grumbled in the back of his mind and Kurama pushed him back. He would take things at his own pace.
Keiko giggled at something over his shoulder and he risked a glance to see Shippo and Botan ignoring the slow music that was coming on and dancing around happily as if it was a fast moving song. He chuckled, but eyed them, noticing the same feeling he had when he was with Keiko reflecting off of their features. They were content with each other.
As, it seemed, were Kagome and Yusuke, though Kurama had heard Shippo muttering a few times to them about hands in inappropriate places. Kagome finally put a stop to it by glaring at him and saying, "You're just complaining about it because you aren't far enough in your relationship with Botan to put your hands in inappropriate places!"
Keiko laughed in delight. "Everyone gets punished if they try and put regulations on her and Yusuke, don't they? She seems able to keep him in line from what I've seen."
"Not upset about them anymore?" Kurama asked.
"Definitely not. After all, she has hers, and I... I have mine." Kurama saw her smile and returned it full force, leaning down to kiss her again, this time his arms twining around her waist. His tongue ran across her lips and she immediately opened her mouth. He cheated at this point, using Youko's memories and experiences to get the most pleasure out of a single kiss as possible. Shyly her own tongue reacted to his, and Youko's urgings came to the front of his mind. He wanted to push them away, but Youko growled at him, and truth be told, Kurama's control of Youko when it came to Keiko was thin. Fortunately a guffaw and a shy giggle stopped them.
Kurama broke off and looked over Keiko's head to see Kuwabara and Yukina, Yukina smiling and Kuwabara grinning. "You two look like youíre having fun."
Keiko groaned and buried her head in Kurama's chest, trying to hide her flushed face. The embarrassing scene was interrupted by Shippo's groan as he looked at Hiei and Sango.
"Yusuke, Kagome, did you two spike the punch again?" Kagome and Yusuke broad smirks were answer enough. Keiko peaked out and looked towards a table where punch had been set up, and saw Hiei and Sango looking a bit tipsy out there. Keiko frowned. They'd been dancing awhile, and those two hadn't at all. Had they been drinking this whole time?
By the way the two were swaying to the music and eyeing each other, Keiko and Kurama both came to an empathetic yes. "We should get them to stop drinking. Before they --especially Hiei, considering he's curbed his demon appetite -- do something they regret."
Kurama's statement came a bit late as Hiei's now slightly glowing red eyes fixed don Sango and reached for her. Sango didn't object when he buried his head into her throat, kissing and licking her shoulder and neck. In fact, she began to run one hand through his upright hair. Kurama groaned. "Now would be a great time to separate them. Before Hiei's instincts kick in and he decides Sango would be nice as a mate."
Shippo nodded in agreement, and Keiko blushed, but both kitsunes went forward, joined by Kagome and Yusuke. They stopped short when the two very drunk individuals lost there balance and fell onto the floor. That of course, didn't stop them, and Kurama winced when he saw where their hands were beginning to roam.
"Yusuke, Kagome, this is why we don't get demons drunk. I doubt Hiei's ever had human alcohol before, and Sango doesn't look like she can stand much either the way she's behaving. Why don't we separate them now, before they wind up mated in the morning?" Kurama's eyes glinted gold as he directed his slight anger towards the couple, who had the grace to look ashamed, before Kagome held up a hand.
"Wait. Shippo, you brought the camera, right?" Shippo caught on to the idea immediately, whipping out the camera and handing it to Kagome. After taking a few pictures, Kagome handed the camera back, and Kagome and Shippo began walking towards Sango, while Kurama and Yusuke took the fire apparition. They pulled Hiei off of Sango, and Yusuke couldn't help but snicker at the confused look Hiei had. Kurama growled low in his throat.
"Don't laugh. If anything makes a demon sick, it could be this." Yusuke gulped, and then noticed Hiei seemed to still be looking towards Sango, who had been placed in Shippo's arms. Hiei growled when she was placed in the kitsune's arms. Kurama sighed as Hiei bared his teeth, but instead of immediately jumping off, Shippo paused to placate the fire apparition. He briefly met the demon's eyes before lowering them to the ground submissively, hunching over as best he could with Sango in his arms, and letting his tail lie low on the ground. Sango appeared to be asleep, whether from alcohol or one of her friends making her sleep. At the submissive gestures, Hiei grunted and went slack, eyes closing drowsily.
"I suppose I should--" Kurama began.
"No, me and Kagome can do it. Our fault anyway." Yusuke swung the slack fire apparition over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Kagome rolled her eyes, but Keiko saw the affectionate smile on her face before she looked apologetically at Kurama and Keiko.
"We're sorry for ruining this. We'll find a way to make it up to you." With that Kagome sped ahead to where Yusuke was striding off, and he immediately began complaining about having to carry Hiei, among Kagome's affectionate teasing and laughs.
"They didn't you know. At least not for me. And I have to really hope that she gives me some copies of those pictures," Keiko whispered. Kurama grinned, turning and capturing her lips again in a brief kiss, his tongue exploring her mouth in a rush before he snapped back, watching her dazed expression with male satisfaction before she blinked up at him.
"What was that for?" she asked in confusion.
"For being you," he answered grinning. He heard Botan sigh behind him and found her floating on an oar.
"I'm going home, it's past midnight you know. Dinner and dancing took longer than I thought. Plus..." She trailed off, but the couple knew what she'd been about to say. She and Shippo had been together most of the night, except when the couples exchanged partners, and they'd stolen some extra kisses of their own.
"All right Botan. See you later!" Kurama and Keiko waved cheerily, then looked around to find Yukina and Kuwabara already gone. Kurama frowned.
"I really hope they just walked home, because Hiei will kill me if anything happens to Yukina." Keiko smiled at the worry in his voice and took his hand in hers, squeezing it gently.
"Don't worry, I heard Kuwabara offer to walk Yukina home while you guys were taking care of Hiei and Sango." Kurama visible relaxed and then the two began walking out, Keiko stopping to turn off the music before they walked. They walked in comfortable silence until they reached the fir tree, where their presents still stood.
"I see despite everyone running off they remembered their presents." The two picked up their presents, but Keiko stopped them at the far entrance, turning to look at what Kurama had created. She put her presents down and leaned up, her lips locking on his and enticing them into a fire kiss, broken off regretfully because they did actually need to breathe after all. Kurama smiled at her before echoing her earlier question.
"What was that for?"
"For making this beautiful. For everything that happened tonight. For being you. And of course, for, and I quote 'a silly tradition'." She took up her presents again, leaving Kurama a contentedly confused, his gaze drifting upwards. There was that little branch of good intentioned mischief. Couples, some happy, like them, and some who had troubles to get through, like Sango and Hiei, who needed to talk more than anything. He had finally kissed Keiko under the mistletoe, despite the rough start they'd gotten off to in that kiss. Kurama chuckled, remembering that Hiei had tried to commit murder when Yukina and Kuwabara had lightly kissed.
He acknowledged it was not a silly tradition. Definitely not for him. He had become truly happy under the mistletoe.
The end
And that ending was totally sappy. But I did originally write it over two years ago... I think I regret posting this now. Looking back at things I've made over a year ago hurt, nevermind two.
Oh, and a note on reviews on some of my stories - swearing? Doesn't make me update faster. It makes me update slower because I lose my muse. And swearing after I update a story? Makes me wonder if posting the story is worth it, at least before I've finished. Strings of Destiny, for instance, will probably have one more chapter posted and then go on hiatus for a few chapters for that very reason, swearing and insults.
If you really think bothering me will make me update faster, I have a forum here at I have AIM, and I have e-mail. We can discuss it at length about what constitutes insults if you disagree.