Disclaimer: Inuyasha isn't mine. Deal with it.
Reviewer Comments:
Golden meliades- Gomen!
DawnRising- Thankee! I'm happy to hear that the storyline works out well. I was nervous myself because I know a lot of the modern-day settings are awkward to write. I'm happy to know it wasn't in vain!
XFallenxGoddessx- In all honesty, I don't think you guys realize how much your reviews mean to me. I become obsessed with getting them because I like to hear what people think of my writing, and I'm just dizzy with happiness because of all the great things you guys say! Thank YOU (this goes for all my reviewers too) for giving me support and taking the time to read what I write. I'm glad you think that I do Inu-chan justice.
As for the versions of IY, I personally buy the Americanized version, but that is more of a perk because I can see the pictures. What I READ are the translations done for Shounen Sunday on a website called Sengoku o-Togi Zoushi. It's a really good website, and I suggest Inuyasha fans check it out if they want worthwhile translations. I'm too poor to buy the tankoubon on a regular basis. . As for knowing anything about the series, I have a gap actually where I haven't read a chunk of the middle manga, but I use what I know. I still want to see the third movie so I can finally hear about the background between Inutaisho and Inuyasha's mother (I can't think of her name for the moment), and all of the past stuff that is essential.
Thanks for the great review! I think that made my week.
Oh, and I'm American, but I lived in Buffalo most of my life, so Canada was always just across the way. Hehe.
Lady Aegis- Sorry about the obsessive use of the Japanese. A lot of times to me it just seems more appropriate to use the Japanese terms than the American equivalents. I'll try to make up a list one of the days to post with the translations for the words.
To Everyone- 'Nother mildly longer chapter. I think these things are just going to keep getting bigger on me… Some new catalysts that I finally plotted in this chapter, plus, for all of those who have been asking, Rin's explanation! Yay! Hope you enjoy it!
Chapter 6
"Ugh! That arrogant jerk! Nothing ever changes. 'Bitch' this, 'wench' that! He doesn't come back for four years and then acts as though I was the bad guy!" Ranting loudly to herself, Kagome stood beside Rin in the kitchen, chopping vegetables as though each one were Inuyasha's head. How dare he? How dare he!
Outside, she could vaguely hear a clap of the thunder and the beginnings of a storm, still chopping ferociously. On the ride over she had noticed the sky slowly darkening with black clouds. Tonight would be a terrible storm, indeed. And just her luck that Sesshoumaru had picked this day to invite her over. It simply figured that, not only would Inuyasha stir up old arguments, but also the weather would choose to spite her. Life just was not fair anymore.
"-ome-nee-san. Kagome-sama!" She blinked before looking over at Rin, stopping momentarily in her chopping as the girl finally managed to catch her attention.
"Yes, Rin-chan?" Rin blushed lightly as Kagome's interests suddenly shifted, looking down bashfully at her own work: preparing the sukiyaki.
"How… how have you been?"
Pausing, the miko thought over the question, before smiling warmly at the younger woman. "Not as good as I would have liked, but I've managed to finally get through school." She laughed lightly. "It would have been so much easier if I had fallen down the well now than eight years ago!"
"Ah, but then Rin probably wouldn't have met you and none of the past would have happened," Rin said with her own laugh, the two women returning to their work with smiles on their faces. After a moment, the smile dropped from Rin's face. "…Thinking about it, if you hadn't come along, I would have never met Sesshoumaru-sama, as it was Tetsusaiga's fault I found him all those years ago…" Kagome's eyes snapped over to survey the woman, her own smile dissipating. What was going on anyways? How was it that she was here in Sesshoumaru's house in the present, cooking dinner with a woman who, by all accounts, should have either been dead or only twelve-years-old? She frowned slightly, staring at the movement of her hands over the vegetables.
"…How… How is it, Rin-chan, that you look so old after only four years? And… you and Sesshoumaru have children… And Shippou is so tall and grown-up now. What… what happened?"
Rin froze, slowly raising her eyes to take in the full view of Kagome's face, unnerving the miko with her expression. "Kagome-sama, it has been five hundred years." Kagome felt the knife slip from her fingers before it clattered to the countertop, but her attention was solely diverted to the young woman before her. Eyes wide, she groped for words, but found herself speechless. Five hundred years!
Finally, "then how… how…"
"How are we here, now?" Kagome nodded. "When it comes to Sesshoumaru-sama and Shippou-chan, you must remember that they are youkai, and thus lives for a much longer time than we humans do. As for Inuyasha-sama and the children, hanyous- though initially growing at the same rate as we do- eventually also slow their own growth, bit by bit. Their lifespan is not that of full-blooded youkai, but still a great deal longer than humans. That is why Inuyasha-sama looks as though he is only a few years older than you or I." She stared down at the counter thoughtfully.
"And you?"
"I… am a special case. As I'm sure you are well aware, I am now Sesshoumaru-sama's Mate, and as such I enjoy certain… privileges." Kagome frowned visibly, unable to understand, and Rin sighed. "It is a bit complicated to explain, but I shall try my best: When a youkai chooses a Mate, it is a different process than simply seeking sexual relations with another creature. Mating signifies a bond between the couple- a contract, if you would. The male consciously chooses to pass on his lineage through the female, thus forming a family with her. This is a very rare honor in the world of youkai, when practiced as it should be. Unfortunately, there are always those who disregard tradition and simply spread their seed as they deem appropriate, but this is rare, and usually intentional.
"Either way, this bond is a very specific form a ritual. Children can still be produced without this bond, but it is the same as simply sleeping with a member of the opposite sex. Through this method, there is a sharing of more than just bodies."
Kagome continued to frown. "More than just bodies?" Rin merely nodded and continued.
"As with all contracts, there is an exchange between the two parties. In cases between youkai, it is simply a trade of certain traits and strengths- as in the gift of abilities between the two. But, between a youkai and a human, there are differences. In return for a mortal woman's womb- for it is difficult, and sometimes fatal, for us to bear youkai children- and affection, youkai exchange a portion of their life. In other words, by my mating with Sesshoumaru-sama, his very presence extends my existence and sustains my life. Instead of growing as I would, I grow as he grows, so that we might share the same years together. He is, forever more, my very life." Having finished, she smiled tenderly, touching a hand to her heart as tears welled in her eyes. Kagome felt her own body tense, touched, understanding.
"…I'm very happy for you, Rin-chan." Her only response was to nod once again before excusing herself from the kitchen. Left alone, Kagome continued to chop with a numb mind.
She had never expected Sesshoumaru, of all people, to make such a decision. True, it had not been hard to realize the taiyoukai's fondness of the little girl that Rin had once been, but Kagome never imagined that the bare-footed wild-child could grow up to become so much more. Somehow, the revelation shocked her, pleased her, and pained her all at once.
Had Inuyasha ever thought that way about anyone?
"Wench, what did you say to the brat to make her cry?" Startled, Kagome faltered in thought and in skill as she heard Inuyasha's voice, the knife slipping suddenly beneath her hand. Still dazed, she cried out only through habit as she felt the blade slice across the back of her finger.
"Ah!" Slowly snapping out of her reverie, she lifted the finger up and set the knife aside, searching the kitchen frantically as it began to spill blood down her hand. Still searching, she was surprised as she felt strong fingers grip her wrist and pull her across the room until she was almost pressed against the body of Inuyasha.
"Stupid Kagome," he muttered, before raising the bloody wound to his face and encasing it gently in his mouth. All she could do was stare at him wide-eyed and blush furiously as he tended to her by his own methods.
"I-Inuyasha…" Rin's story rang in her ears, Inuyasha's golden eyes burning into her own. She could feel his tongue lapping at her wound, cleaning it and clearing away the blood as only he would. She suddenly felt suffocated, felt her own tears brim in her eyes. Why had he never asked her to stay? Because she was only a human, a shard detector, nothing more. What need did a hanyou have for a weak human girl from another time?
Unable to control herself, she choked back a sob, drawing Inuyasha's undivided attention as he pulled back with a puzzled expression. "Kagome?" The grip on her wrist loosened, the blood from her finger eased to a small beading at the cut, and his free hand rose to potentially brush at her tears. She never gave him the opportunity.
"I'm sorry!" Slipping from his grasp, she ran past him and out of the kitchen, already blinded by tears. She could hear him call out to her as she went, but her feet refused to stop. Retracing her steps through the maze of a house, she quickly slipped on her shoes and opened the front door. There was more ruckus as she did so: Rin and Sesshoumaru coming to see the problem, Inuyasha rushing down the hall after her. She could hear the beginnings of an argument between the two brothers even as she stepped out into the storm, instantly drenched. She did not care, but kept running through the cold and wet.
What kind of fool was she? She had lived four years without Inuyasha nagging and complaining at her, and fifteen before that of blissful ignorance. In her own way she had been happy, working towards a productive, common goal with her fellow classmates, earning a degree in a field that could and would help the people around her, returning to see a family that had loved her forever and a day. How many times had Inuyasha tried to prevent her from doing homework or taking exams? How many times had he told her that it was foolish to want to help someone because that was how life went? How many times had he betrayed her to run to Kikyou? So, how much of a fool WAS she?
The water poured in thick streams down her face as she ran, mixing and dissolving her tears away. Her feet slipped easily over the concrete of the sidewalks, slick with puddles and mud from the few patches of earth that could be found. She did not know where she was running to, only felt her legs pump and her body move.
How much pain would she allow him to cause her? Wasn't it bad enough that he had come into her life to begin with? What was it about Inuyasha that always made her thoughts drift back to him?
You love him.
With a cry, she finally slipped on the pavement, tumbling forward onto her knees and feeling the ground collide painfully with her body. She did not try to rise, though, and instead sat there, allowing the rain to drench her to the very bone.
It was his very existence that enchanted her. What was she without him? She was just another girl, going to school, getting a job, pursuing life. And with him? A miko, a friend, a mother, a guardian, a counselor, a warrior… As just a woman, she loved every piece of him, but most of all she loved that he made her feel important with just a word, a gesture. He had protected her through thick and thin, stood by her through the good and the bad, and done it all with a stubborn pout and a hidden smile. Somehow, she realized in stunned amazement, Inuyasha had become her air to breathe.
"What are you doing, you fool!" Wide eyed, Kagome turned her face skyward in time to see the hanyou land before her, frowning and as drenched as she. When she failed to respond, he eyed her and scoffed, reaching down to pull her to her feet. "Keh, you go running out in the rain like some idiot and manage to cut yourself up even more," he growled, obviously eyeing her now red and bleeding knees. Instinctively, she blushed through her tears and the rain, realizing he was right. "Come on, you humans can't stay out in weather like this for two seconds without getting sick." And with that, he started back the way they had come, pulling her along by her hand as though she had simply been caught in the rain on her way home.
"I-Inuyasha!" She managed to choke out, following obediently. He glanced back as she called out, still frowning.
"Save it, Kagome. We'll deal with it later." She blinked, forgetting her tears and her upset. 'We'll deal with it later'? Since when did Inuyasha do anything later? Numb and stunned, she continued walking behind him without another word, staring at his back until they were safely inside the house again.
"Ah! Kagome-sama, you're drenched!" As they stepped inside, Rin rushed to greet her with towels in hand, throwing one around Kagome's shoulders before handing the other to Inuyasha. The hanyou, seeming to ignore all rules of respect, brushed past the two women and disappeared down one of the hallways, wringing himself out as he went. Sesshoumaru stood just outside beyond the front entrance, watching the women with the same apathetic expression that he always wore. After surveying the scene for a few moments, he turned from the doorway, speaking in that familiar, bored tone.
"Rin, tend to the miko's wounds and clothing and prepare a room for her. She will be staying for the night." Kagome blanched.
"Wha- But, Sesshoumaru, you don't-"
"I will not have a woman become ill due to the ability of my brother to upset anything that moves. You will stay here tonight. I will go and inform your family." And with that he disappeared as well, off to complete his task and leaving Kagome to gape after him.
Helpless and defeated, she looked to Rin. "Does he even know my number?"
She sat quietly in her room that night dressed in a warm, dry kimono that Rin had given to her to borrow. It was white, with pink sakura petals and pink trim, a combination that the grinning girl had claimed looked stunning on the miko. Kagome had simply been thankful to receive dry clothing.
Dinner had been awkward, and mostly silent, with some small talk or the occasional illogical rant from Aya when she became bored with her dinner. Inuyasha had not spoken at all except to answer Aya's inane inquiries, but instead had finished his meal as quickly as possible before leaving the room again. He had not yet changed out of his firerat haori at that point, and had therefore looked like some sort of soggy animal that had crawled in from outside, which was not far from the truth.
Fortunately, dinner had allowed her to inquire into the lives of the people she had once known so well- at least as far as Sesshoumaru and Rin went. Since the feudal era the taiyoukai had easily kept his title, despite the gradual fade of youkai into myth. To the youkai who still inhabited normal society (there were quite a few, apparently), Sesshoumaru was lord and master, and any who crossed him met either financial or physical difficulties. Somehow, this information did not surprise Kagome, and she had found herself even less shocked by the fact that Sesshoumaru, in fact, owned and managed one of the largest corporations in Japan under an alias and the guise of humanity. After all, what did a youkai do for five hundred years if not make himself a millionaire CEO of a company that runs a good portion of a country? At the very least, that explained the house.
Sesshoumaru's house, she soon had realized, was massive. Too dazed to notice upon her initial arrival, when given the chance to explore she found herself easily lost in a maze of hallways and doors. But everything was beautiful. Priceless tapestries, paintings, pottery, and every other kind of ancient object could be found in mint condition throughout the house, and Kagome did not doubt that they had all been in the taiyoukai's possession since at least the time she had first met him. What did surprise her, though, was Rin's revelation that they had very few housekeepers. In fact, the couple employed only a pair of youkai to care for the house, and whatever was left over was Rin's responsibility. This, Rin explained, was much against Sesshoumaru's likings, but he did not interfere with her wishes.
"You clean your own house?"
"Well, don't you?"
"Er… Yes, but…"
"And I do as well. Rin likes to please her lord with her own work. It is not for anyone else to do."
Kagome found that she could not respect the "younger" woman any more than when she had spoken those words. While most women would complain and hire servants to maintain the house, Rin took pride in doing the work herself while knowing that it was something that would make her lover content and happy- in his own way, of course. It was not that she believed it to be her place in life, it was simply a respect she believed she owed to Sesshoumaru: life for work, family for home.
Uncharacteristically, Kagome had found herself jealous as the proud woman had smiled and walked off, wishing she had the same relationship. Not that she ever would, of course…
"Kagome?" She started at the sound of her name, and eyed the door as she easily recognized Inuyasha's voice, if not a bit gentler than usual. She frowned.
"What do you want, Inuyasha?" She was still angry with him for all he had said to her, and for all the time he had stayed away. Didn't he know how much she had wanted to see him? Didn't he understand? …Or maybe he had simply not wanted to see her…
She could sense his hesitation at the tone in her voice, but listened respectfully when he decided to continue. "I wanted to talk to you about… things. I know we have a lot of… unfinished business." For some reason, his choice of phrase only seemed to anger her more, and Kagome soon found herself standing and stomping towards the door, flinging it open before she realized her actions.
"'Unfinished BUSINESS'? Is that what it is?" She glared her best death glare.
"Well-"
"Is this just some nuisance to you? Am I just something to 'take care of'?" She was getting angrier by the second. Had that really been the case for all these years?
"That's not what I mean! Kagome-"
"Inuyasha-"
"Would you let me talk?"
"Why should I? Give me one good reason!"
"Damnit, Kagome! Just-"
"Yo! Dog Shit!" Both hanyou and miko froze amidst yelling at one another, one wide-eyed while the other suddenly scowled. "Where's my woman, Mutt-face? I can smell her!"
Kagome could only watch, jaw dropping open, as a familiar whirlwind of wolf whipped down the hallway toward them before coming to an abrupt halt in front of them- Inuyasha in particular. Kagome stared.
"Well, where is she?" The black-haired wolf asked of the suddenly twitching hanyou, seemingly oblivious to Kagome's presence. "You can't keep her from me forever, Dog Turd, so where is she, where's my Kagome?" Inuyasha, still apparently fighting for self-control, scoffed.
"Keh! If you had any fucking intelligence, Wimpy Wolf, you'd know she was standing right next to you!" Kagome was tempted to run at that moment and slam the door in both canine faces, but found herself trapped as suddenly both her hands were caught up between clawed fingers, deep blue eyes gazing into brown as swiftly as the wind moved. "Kagome, I've finally found you!"
You've got to be kidding me…"Ehhehehe… K-Kouga-kun…."
This was going to be a long night…
AN- Yeah, it's a Kouga-kun, go figure. I wanted to find a way to put him in the story from the beginning (he is a youkai after all), and I figured this was a choice time. Put more stress on Kago-chan and Inu-chan for the time being. Bwhahaha. Hope you enjoyed it!
-Sar