Disclaimer: Everyone wishes they owned Inuyasha. To bad none of us do.
Warning: This story contains explicit sexual content. Reader discretion is advised.
The one.
Chapter six: A Dress
"I'm full." Kagome announced as she flopped back onto the enormous bed with the soft red duvet cover. She sighed contentedly and closed her eyes. She'd changed into her cut offs and her last top after they'd come back home. It was a black t-shirt with a horrific fanged skull on the front. Her daddy didn't approve. Oh well. Despite her appearance, dinner went well. There was no chocolate cake in the face today and the storm Kagome had predicted in coming turned out to be nothing but a small shower.
Kagome stretched languidly as she and Inuyasha mad their way down the hall toward Inuyasha's bedroom. The sun was sinking below the horizon, a soft pink tint to the surrounding skyline. It was a beautiful evening and Kagome felt invigorated. She smiled at Inuyasha as he held his door open for her.
"You should change now." Inuyasha advised as he closed the door and slipped out of his button down and started pulling his t-shirt over his head.
"But I'm not tired yet." Kagome announced, looking at him curiously.
"Good. We're not going to sleep." Kagome's cheeks heated as a blush crept up her throat. Inuyasha laughed. "I didn't mean that, but if you want to, we can definitely skip the departure ceremony."
"Departure ceremony?" Kagome asked, desperately trying not to blush harder. Mind out of the gutter! She told herself.
"Yeah. Every time the clan gets together, the last night is spent at a departure ceremony. It's kind of like a ball in an American fairy tale. And you get to be the princess." Inuyasha flashed her a charming smile and winked.
"A princess?" Kagome thought about it for a minute. "But I don't have anything to wear!"
"Just wear something nice." Inuyasha said, shrugging indifferently as he opened the closet and pulled out a formal white shirt. Kagome had a small freak out.
"I can't just wear anything! This is terrible! What am I going to do? Inuyasha… This was my last shirt! I can't wear this! Oh no!" Kagome was near tears as she looked at the skirt she'd brought – not nearly formal enough – and then the t-shirt she was wearing. If there was any kind of compassionate god out there it would kill her this instant.
"Wow, it's okay. Don't panic. If you're worried, I can ask Sango if she has anything you can borrow." Inuyasha's eyebrows were furrowed in concern.
"Who's Sango?"
"She's pretty much my family's personal assistant."
"Do I know her?" The name sounded vaguely familiar to her.
"How should I know?"
"I don't know!"
"Okay, calm down!" Inuyasha snapped back as he pulled on black dress pants.
"Okay, I'm calm." Kagome said more quietly.
"Good… Yeesh." He snatched a red silk dress coat off a hanger and slung it over his arm. "Come on, let's go find Sango."
Inuyasha lead the way out of the bedroom and back down the hall. Kagome followed behind him, a little embarrassed, a little shy. She didn't even know who Sango was and undoubtedly, if she was the personal assistant of the entire family, Sango must know who she was. Nothing was more awkward than not remembering someone you'd met.
"Sango!" Inuyasha yelled from the top of the stairs.
"Ballroom!" Some strange disembodied voice yelled back. Kagome wondered if the disembodied voice always knew where Sango was. What was she thinking? What and idiot. Kagome thought and shook her head. It would not be a surprise if she suddenly woke up in a completely white room with a doctor and men in white coats standing around her.
Kagome doggedly followed Inuyasha through the maze of hallways that were slowly starting to seem familiar. At least, she thought they were until they entered an enormous ballroom where she thought the kitchen ought to be.
"Sango!" Inuyasha yelled as he flung the double doors open.
"Inuyasha?" Sango called back in a sing song voice.
"Kagome needs a dress." Inuyasha stated bluntly. Kagome felt her cheeks burst into a flaming blush. How inconsiderate.
Sango looked over from where she was directing dessert displays and gave Kagome a warm smile. "Didn't pack a gown?" She asked, turning from her plates and forks that didn't quite match, she faced the more immediate problem.
"No," Kagome said, looking at her toes. Inuyasha wound his arm around her waist and gently stroked the back of her arm. It was a comforting but it really tickled. Every time his finger raised above a certain point, a wave of goose bumps would come crashing over my body. I bit my lip to keep from bursting out into hysterical laughter.
"Please, follow me, you can borrow one of my dresses." Sango smiled brilliantly and lead the way out of the ball room and down the hall. Kagome was grateful, and yet she somehow felt that Sango's offer was insincere. She was probably just being selfish.
"My room is just here. I'll set you up with my dresses and you can choose from them." Sango entered a room off the right of a corridor. It was beautiful. The room was wide and sweeping, open to the fading light of twilight. The picture windows, adorned with sweeping velvet curtains, looked out over the stunning gardens, sweeping off into the distance. The wide oak bed nestled in the centre of the room, flanked by elegant bedside tables. The light in the room came from an amazingly intricate chandelier that seemed to drip crystal. Curled on one of the velvet covered chairs was a tiny cat demon. Its twin tails twitched as it watched the progression of strangers into its home.
Kagome's eyes grew wide as she took in the sweeping beauty of the papered walls and the crowning that ran throughout the room. "Sango! It's beautiful."
"Thank you. I do my own decorating." Sango smiled for real this time, a small dimple in her cheek and a light in her eyes. She was slightly flushed from the compliment. "The dresses are just here."
"Thank you!" Kagome hurried to the closet that Sango help open and peered in, delighted by the array of colours that greeted her. "Wow! Are these all yours?" Kagome felt her blood heat up and she nearly melted with pleasure. It was like shopping all over again.
"Well, I'll leave you to pick which one you want. Have fun." Sango flashed that fake smile again and turned to leave. Kagome called out and she paused at the door, looking over her shoulder. "Yes?"
"Which one are you wearing? I don't want to pick that one or anything." Kagome laughed a little, feeling a little stupid for one reason or another.
Sango looked slightly stunned for a moment, but then she gave Kagome a true smile that made Kagome's heart clench and the corners of her lips turn up slightly. "I'm wearing the pink one with the empire waist." She turned back to the door and left Kagome and Inuyasha alone.
Kagome stared at the door for a long moment, perplexed. Sango was certainly an interesting character. Kagome vowed to find out more about her. They would be friends. Even if it killed her. Kagome would have killed to get that smile back. Why was she so… pessimistic? Could you say that about someone you'd never really talked to? Probably not.
"Wear red." Inuyasha ordered, his lips brushing her ear as he whispered it.
Kagome jumped, tripping over her own feet falling away from him. "Yeesh! You nearly gave me a heart attack!"
"Wear red." He ordered again, grinning.
"Why red?"
"Because I love the colour red." Inuyasha allowed his eyes to slide from her face, taking in her full lips, down her throat, lingering on her breasts, following to the flare of her hips, and then finally down those long, slender legs and then back up. By the time he made his way back to her face, her cheeks were flushed and she was squirming, the scent of her arousal faint on the air. He grew hard almost immediately.
Uncomfortable, Kagome cleared her throat, shifting her weight from foot to foot. She was afraid to meet his smoldering gaze, so the looked down to his lips. Her heart skipped a beat. She dragged her gaze down the column of his throat to liger over his broad shoulders. She remembered what they looked like bare. Her heart skipped again. She was dragging her eyes down again and when her gaze lingered on the crotch of his pants he told her: "I'm hard for you." Her heart stopped.
"Red it is!" Kagome's voice came out as a squeak as she tried to drag air into her lungs again. Trying to encourage her heart to start up again.
The closet was a treasure trove of beauty and elegance. Kagome tried desperately to focus on what she was looking at. There were several red dresses hanging in Sango's closet and Kagome focused on trying to pick one out, desperately trying to keep her mind off of the hard… the sexy hanyou behind her. She couldn't think straight! All she could think about as she ran her hands down the length of a blood red gown was the mysterious hardness that was right behind her.
"That one's nice." Inuyasha said in a husky voice, speaking around the tightness in his throat.
Kagome jumped and nearly dropped the dress when he spoke, her nipples tightening under her shirt, suddenly extremely sensitive to the coolness of her shirt. Kagome cleared her throat and pulled the hanger off the rack. She very carefully held the red silk gown in front of her in pretense of showing Inuyasha what it would look like. Fortunately he couldn't see her nipples through her shirt either! Go strategic placement.
"This one?" Kagome asked as she tucked the hanger behind her head so he could see what it would look like.
"Yeah, that one."
Kagome nodded and started at him. They stared at each other. There was silence and some more staring. Kagome grew uncomfortable and broke the silent staring contest.
"Well you have to leave so I can change." Kagome informed him, incase he didn't already know.
"You'll need help getting it on."
"I'll manage."
"No you won't."
"Yes I will."
"No."
"Yes!" Kagome stomped her foot for emphasis.
"I won't look. Just turn around and change." He had crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in his seat. A purely arrogant stance.
Kagome huffed and grumbled and eventually gave in. She stripped off her pants and threw them at him. He ducked and the jean cutoffs missed his head but her t-shirt nailed him. He jerked it off his head fast enough to see her sliding the silk gown up over her legs and then her ass, pooling it at the small of her back as she tool hold of the front of the contraption and pulled it over her breasts. The straps hung down the back and it was bunched over her ass. Not to mention the zipper was open. She needed help. He was just the one to help her.
"Here, let me help you."
"I've got it!" Kagome snapped as she reached around and fiddled with the zipper, not really getting it anywhere.
Inuyasha had helped Sango with that particular dress a number of times. He knew how it worked. With a confident stride, he made his way over to her and took the zipper out of her hands. He slid it closed smoothly. He ran the ribbon through his hands before he pulled it up to her creamy throat and wrapped it around and around, eventually tying it into a delicate bow to the left. Finally he smoothed the fabric down her back and ran his hands over the gentle curve of her buttocks. The fabric ran smooth and pooled around her feet, like walking through a red cloud.
Kagome moved away from him, her insides all tied in knots. All she could think about was how hard he was. She shook her head ferociously and examined herself in the full length mirror. The dress was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen. All that red silk, synching and pooling, as smooth as liquid running through her fingers. The dress was a little bit tight at the top, her breasts pressed together to make a smooth line of cleavage. And Kagome would have liked to have lost some weight off her hips before actually wearing the dress but it would do.
"It's perfect." Inuyasha breathed.
Kagome laughed. She twirled around in the dress to face him and he felt as if the wind had been knocked out of him. She was stunning. He wouldn't mind taking he out to the ball room right now and showing her off to the rest of his clan. He truly had the most beautiful mate any demon could have hoped for.
"You need shoes." Inuyasha noticed.
A smile touched Kagome's lips and all he wanted to do was kiss them.
"I guess you're right. Well, I have some that might look alright."
Inuyasha was quiet for a moment as he simply took in his mate's appearance. When Kagome grew uncomfortable, he decided it was time to tell her about the ceremony they would both be participating in tonight.
"Kagome…" She looked up at him, smiling, her eyes bright and her cheeks flushed. He swallowed. Hard. "Uh… well, I just thought I'd warn you about the closing ceremony…"
"Oh, thanks. I guess that would help wouldn't it? Do I have to do something special and hostess-like? I'm kind of shy so I'm not really looking forward to that but I suppose that it's something like mingling and shaking hands. Am I right?"
"Well… sort of." Inuyasha shifted his position a little, beginning to dread telling her about her duty.
There was a long silent pause as Kagome waited for Inuyasha to continue. Since he was taking so long, she decided that he needed prompting.
"Is it sort of like playing hostess?"
"Well… I guess. Yeah, it sort of is. For Inu Yokai."
"Okay, well that's something. Are you going to tell me?"
Inuyasha sighed, accepting the inevitability of telling her.
"Those demons that found mates and their families will all come up to greet you and thank you and me for our hospitality and they'll want to scent you too. I don't want you to freak, but Inu Yokai are very… physical… with their greetings."
Kagome looked at him suspiciously. "Go on."
"Just, don't freak, but I'm going to show you what they'll be doing."
"Okay…"
Inuyasha took a deep breath and stepped closer to Kagome, their bodies nearly touching. "Mimic me." He ordered her. When she nodded he gently slid his cheek along hers and brought his nose up behind her ear, inhaling her scent. Vanilla, lilies, chilly peppers, chocolate and that fierce pull of sex. She was his. Kagome sniffed at him in turn and he slowly pulled away.
"That was to scent… To greet will be like this…" Inuyasha's head bent down and he ran his tongue over her lip, nipping it gently afterwards.
Kagome caught her breath before she decided to be outraged. "I do not want strange men and women licking my face."
"Kagome, you have to. It's jus the way things are."
"No."
"Yes. Period. End of discussion."
"Inuyasha!"
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