Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or any of its characters.
Chapter Sixty-Two: Bittersweet
The boy huffed heavily as he let his legs swing and pulled his body back, leaning against the trunk of the tree he was perched on. The wind ruffled his long silver hair, left free, that ended up on his face. Every couple of seconds, he lifted his arm to move it away, then he sighed again.
He had his eyes closed and a bored expression.
After a while, his friend resting at the base of the same tree, face turned to the sky, enjoying the midday sun, got tired of those sighs. He had dark hair that reached the base of his neck, now loose, which he usually gathered in a small pigtail, fair skin and a slender body.
"Will you stop it?" he blurted out with not much conviction. Looking up, he revealed two deep blue eyes that would have made any girl in the village fall at his feet; they usually went with a mischievous expression that immediately revealed his not entirely pacific intentions. "You wanted to come here to relax and do it, for crying out loud! I can't either if you keep sighing like a lost soul. What do you have to complain about anyway? You're still young; you have no commitment, no heartache to deal with. Ah, sweet memories." His speech began with such seriousness and wisdom ended with a sigh of his own, followed immediately by that of his friend still in the tree.
"Keh," the first one scoffed. "You're older than I am by only a few months."
"Ah, my friend, I wish it were so," the young man on the ground sighed again. "I wish it were so... but you see, actually..."
The silver-haired boy looked at him blankly. "It is indeed, Hisui; cut the crap. Besides, weren't you the one who said I should stop sighing? And what are you doing, now, instead?"
The young man called Hisui shook his head. "That's true, my friend, but in the meantime, you've reminded me of how unfair life has been."
"Oi, I should say that, instead! You're all here growing up fast, becoming responsible men and women — well, you not so much, but as far as others are concerned..." He shrugged. "I, on the other hand..." he sighed. "I, on the other hand…I'm still getting called a pup." He grimaced as he emphasized that last word, almost as if uttering made the bile rise in his throat. He shuddered and closed his eyes. "Kami! I swear, next time Mom calls me that…" He ran a hand through his hair and tried to forget that awful feeling.
Hisui burst out laughing in response.
"I don't find anything funny about it."
"Indeed, my friend. I take back everything I said... who wants to be young again? Ah, I couldn't think of a beautiful day without imagining a damsel's skin glowing in the sun, her full lips begging to be kissed, those clear eyes that- Ow!" Hisui jumped up, massaging his head on which a bump was quickly sprouting. Then, he squeezed those fabulous blue eyes he used to court the daughters of farmers and artisans, turning to his friend. "Toga! Are you crazy? What will the blacksmith's daughter think now that we pass by if she sees me looking like this?" The dreamy air of a second before was completely gone.
Toga cast him another indifferent glance, then, at last, he jumped down from the tree, giving him a tap just where, a moment before, he had struck him with a pebble, exhibiting perfect precision. "It's not my fault you only talk about women. That's why it's no longer fun to spend time with you; you're a whiner."
"Oh, I'm the whiner? Who was complaining before? It's not my fault you still can't enjoy the joys of life, indeed, the greatest pleasure in life." Hisui smiled slyly, teasing his childhood friend right where he knew it would irritate him the most. "How boring it would be to have to grow up at the same slow pace as you demons...a maturity that never comes. But you cannot understand, my friend; then again, even your mind is not comparable to mine." He made to encircle his shoulders with an arm, but the younger one shrugged him off violently.
"Hisui," Toga hissed through clenched teeth, on the verge of completely losing his temper. "Will you stop with your perverted obsessions? Or do you want me to tell your mother how many girls you've groped this morning alone?" he raised an eyebrow, smug.
The older of the two — but only by a few months old — was about to retort and continue the bickering, actually more innocent than it seemed, when a slightly irritated female voice reached both their ears. Hisui jerked as if he'd been caught red-handed with his hands up a woman's skirt, and Toga snickered, crossing his hands behind his head and heading in the same direction the voice was coming from.
"Move, you pervert, you don't want to get caught meditating, do you?"
The two boys were barely fifteen years old, and even if they had grown up together as brothers, their differences were undeniable. While the first was human and had just begun to experience the joys that came along with being called 'man', the other had powerful demonic blood in his veins that slowed his growth and maturity. At first glance, Toga might not have looked so young compared to Hisui, but he was still far from being as mature as a boy — a young man — of their era should have been. The two of them had just entered that stage of their lives where their differences would slowly become more and more evident until the distance between them would be unbridgeable and no one would ever refer to them as peers again. And Toga was already experiencing the downsides of still being a child while his best friend grew up.
The smell of celebration and change vibrating in the air didn't help that grumpier mood he was in that late summer day when the leaves had already begun to yellow.
Although he had partly vented his irritation at his friend, his pout remained on his lips, as did the frown between his eyebrows. At that moment, he was the perfect imitation of his father's younger version, with his still a bit childish features and his face devoid of the bitterness that only those who had grown up alone and chased away from everyone could know.
Perhaps, it was true that growing up in a human village, watching friends and relatives grow into men put him in a difficult situation, given his longevity. And, maybe, his immaturity implied that he was grumpy and difficult. But Toga had been lucky, after all. Only, he couldn't yet know how much or how.
Reaching Hisui's parents' hut, they found Sango out there waiting for them, her expression irritated and her hands on hips. The typical mom expression proclaiming, "trouble ahead" or "don't play games with me".
The young human gulped, while the quarter demon next to him tried to refrain from snickering.
Sango looked at them annoyed at first, then her eyes narrowed, and she noticed her son's mussed hair and the bump on his head. At that point, she went completely into "You're in trouble" mode.
Hisui gulped a second time and took the first step back, not really believing he could escape his mother's fury. "Hi, Mom," he murmured, his tone now lacking the bravado he had so abounded in while talking about girls and conquests.
Sango approached him without wasting a second and grabbed his face to better inspect the bump. "What on earth did you do this time?" She felt his bump, not caring about the pain it would cause her son and made sure it was nothing irremediable.
"W-what?" he yelped. "I didn't do anything. It was all Toga's fault for hitting me again." He raised an accusing finger at his friend, who didn't flinch, but his mother didn't look away from him for a second. In fact, it seemed the excuse only enraged her more.
"Ah, yes," Sango arched an eyebrow. "Again, you say?" She grabbed him by the ear and began dragging him towards the hut as Toga followed them, this time laughing openly and shaking his head. "It just so happens that Toga only ever hit you when he found you doing things you shouldn't be doing with unmarried women. Now, I also have to try to fix this bump if you don't want to make a fool of yourself tomorrow. And I guess we're going to have to have a little chit-chat again, too, you and me, son." Finally, she turned to the other boy and gave him a dirty look too, which made him stop laughing immediately. "Come on in, you too; it'll be your mother who'll have to deal with you."
Those were feverish days, or at least it was for the family of the two friends who had wasted a little too much time lazing around instead of helping with preparations.
In the slayer and monk's large hut, both families were currently gathered between the main room and the courtyard in the back. Everyone was busy, including the youngest of ten and nine years old.
All around, the air was hectic, and there was the anticipation that only good things usually brought. Anxiety was equally present, along with excitement and even a little fear for the novelty that the following day would carry. Life afterwards would never be the same, and each of them, at the moment, experienced that set of emotions differently.
Kimiko, Sango and Miroku's oldest daughter, would be getting married, and she was partly the reason for Toga's darker mood.
It wasn't fair to say the shi-hanyou resented his friend for the step she was about to take, but for the change, she would bring with her. Getting married meant becoming a woman in her own right, entering a new phase of her life and leaving her family to create her own. How long would it take her to become a mother and then a grandmother? One year, two? Twenty?
Toga shuddered at the thought as he entered the main room and tried to avoid his mother's burning gaze.
Most of all, the young demon didn't understand why everyone felt the need to grow up so fast, the rush to get married and search for children. Why were humans rushing so much? Were they so dissatisfied with their lives that they constantly wanted to change? Yet, he had always naively believed that Kimiko, Emi and everyone else were happy with theirs. He remembered those days spent playing together, running away from duties and lying to avoid punishment. So, why was there now such a rush to chase after those same duties from which, until a short time ago, they were running away?
Emi would follow Kimiko, and Hisui was already talking about being a man — chasing skirts, he was — and making fun of him, even though he knew the subject bothered the young quarter-demon.
Why were Toga and his brother condemned to such a prolonged childhood, a face that retained too many childish features and a mind that could not yet grasp the importance of certain feelings and instincts? He was content to continue escaping his duties for much longer. He was interested in fighting with his brother, learning tricks with Shippo and begging his father to let him try Tessaiga. What was the hurry to find himself a woman? He just couldn't see the appeal.
But, lately, all Hisui wanted to talk about were the daughters of this and that. He had stopped playing with Kimiko and Emi ages ago — they had become almost copies of Sango, and he didn't want to get a lecture from them too.
Sure, he could have started spending time with Hiroshi and Kenzo, Hisui's younger brothers. But for how much longer? Before long, they'd be grown up, too, and they'd recognize whatever attraction the women had for all the men in the village. And he would be left without peers.
His shoulders sagged as he reached his mother, who froze open-mouthed, on the verge of giving him who knows what lecture, as soon as she noticed her son's more dejected mood.
Kagome tried to embrace him, but at the last second, she withdrew her outstretched hands; it had been a while since Toga had been looking for her affection as much as he did with his father's admiration. Sometimes she even found it hard to remember the super-affectionate, skirt-attached child he had been — and though it had seemed excessive at the time, she now longed for it. Moreover, when he was down in the dumps, she was always afraid to say the wrong thing and embarrass him, especially since she could already imagine what the reason for his more despondent mood might be. Inuyasha had mentioned a few things to her.
"Are you okay, honey?" she asked then, "You and Hisui didn't have a fight, did you?"
Toga suppressed the instinct to roll his eyes, like any kid his age, and slumped to the ground, crossing his legs and resting his chin on his palm. "Nah, Ma, nothing new. He's the usual pervert." The resentment he unconsciously used to emphasize the word revealed much about his current inner state to his mother.
Kagome gave him an apprehensive look, then turned to the other boy, who was currently undecided whether to massage the swollen bump on his head or the red ear his mother had given him seconds earlier.
The latter felt the need to speak her mind. For her being the bride's mother, there were even more things to do. And now, Hisui had inevitably raised her stress level. Having a son who took too much from his father certainly didn't help her, and she never missed an opportunity to point this out. "What other reason could there be but that the gentleman here," another tug of the ear, "felt the need to investigate what was under someone's skirt. It would be interesting to find out what would happen if I tried to recreate Miroku's old vortex on the cursed hand he passed down to his son," she concluded testily.
Her son gulped in fright; it was not the first time his mother had threatened such a thing, but each time she seemed more and more convinced. Maybe running off into the woods just today hadn't been such a great idea.
Kagome suppressed a giggle, covering her mouth with one hand, and even Toga couldn't help but look up and give his friend a derisive look.
"You could try, Sango," agreed her friend, "but I don't think you want to find out right now," she added, referring to the last and most important preparations that still needed to be finished. "In the meantime, how about I take a look at that nasty bump? We wouldn't want the bride's brother to disfigure that much, would we?" She winked at Hisui, who grimaced in pain, but inside he was grateful his aunt had spared him a longer lecture. Without her intervention, his mother might have continued with her spiel who knows how much longer.
"Hmph," Sango snorted, in fact, "you get away with it today, young man. Be thankful I have far too much to do, but tomorrow night you'll hear from me...you and your father!" Then she turned to Toga, "And after your mother finishes with him, I want to see you two behave! Everyone is working here, and I don't see why you should laze around."
The two young men cast a glance at the courtyard where their fathers and brothers were engaged in activities that seemed quite tiring and let out yet another sigh of the day.
One thing was sure: young or not, men or not, that day would be a long one for both of them.
The following morning everyone had woken up earlier than usual in the quiet village at the edge of Inuyasha's forest. After all, weddings were always important moments; they united more than one family, spread the air of celebration and made an otherwise monotonous day more cheerful. Even those who were not invited offered their good wishes during the ceremony at the temple. They made sure to see the bride dressed to the nines, confabulated about how long it would take the newlyweds to conceive, then, at the end of the ceremony, bet on the future sex of the unborn child or the next ones to get married.
In fact, the betting would begin days before the wedding. Normally, Miroku was one of the most passionate men when it came to making deals — and dusting off some ancient trick he now only used during exorcisms. However, since the object of most of the bets, this time, was both of his daughters — they were already betting on how soon Emi would get married, who already had a suitor of her own, even though she was busy with Kagome for her priestess apprenticeship —, he had lost a bit of his cheerful spirit. For days, he had been throwing dirty looks at those who had always been his betting friends. And there had been no lack of threats to Inuyasha either: woe betide him if he dared to take part in such insulting initiatives! The half-demon had rolled his eyes and called him a hypocrite.
The same half-demon was now fighting with the collar of the tight ceremonial kimono his wife had forced him to wear for the event. Even though he was now used to wearing other clothes apart from his hinezumi robe, he became his usual stubborn self on occasions like that; he always insisted on dressing informally until threats from his wife reached his dog ears.
He was still cursing the obi of his pants when two slender arms wrapped around his waist from behind and helped him complete the task. Then, the same hands pulled his long hair away from his neck, and a pair of lips pecked lightly on his neck, leaving a trail of kisses that made him shiver.
"You know what happens when you do that, koishii," he murmured, covering her arm with his and tightening his grip. "Are you sure you want to do it now?" He turned to face her and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.
Kagome giggled in response, then stood up again on her tiptoes and stole him a kiss. "Maybe tonight... if you're good." She winked and tried to pull away, but Inuyasha held her to him and made her feel exactly what those attentions of hers were provoking. "Control yourself, koi; we have a wedding to attend." She wriggled a bit in his arms, and he finally let go of her, huffing.
"You're never funny," he scoffed at her. "That would have been a great incentive for the boring day ahead."
"Boring! Need I remind you that the bride is practically your daughter? What would Miroku and Sango think if they heard you talk like that?"
"Keh, I'd think the same even if it was my own getting married," he replied. "And speaking of daughters..." he sneaked up to her, still stalling her as she turned around. "How about a little practice?" He gently kissed her neck, still trying to coax her. "Don't you miss having a little one around the house?" But after so long together, Kagome had learned well how dirty her husband liked to play, and while most of the time she more than willingly gave in, that morning wasn't one of them. She no longer had a watch to check the time, but all she had to do was look over to the window to notice that they were already late. And she still had something to talk to him about.
She let him think for a few seconds he was getting what he wanted, but when his hands cupped her breasts and then tried to sneak under her clothes, she blocked him. Instead of being upset, Inuyasha burst out laughing and raised his hands in surrender. "You see? It's like I say; you're no fun."
Kagome tapped him lightly on the arm and gave him an unconvinced glare. "Oh, you know how funny I am," she winked again, "but I reiterate that this is not the time. Besides, I came here to talk to you about something." She lowered her voice in saying this last thing as if she was afraid of being overheard. Indeed, in a house where she was the only human, one didn't even have to concentrate to hear what was going on in the next room. Sometimes it was helpful, sometimes not — and their children had learned it the hard way as they grew up.
Inuyasha arched an eyebrow and then pricked up his ears to make sure the other residents were too busy doing something else to listen in on their parents' conversations. He then questioned his mate with his gaze.
"Toga's in a bad mood again," she began, knowing there was no need to add more.
The half-demon sighed and then ran a hand through his hair, somewhere between exasperated and desperate. He didn't know what to say; he understood his son and remembered well the day he had first realized that time flowed differently for the humans around him. But at the time, he was alone, he had already lost his mother, and it all had been so different. So, in a way, it was also new for him to have to deal with a similar change. He saw the wrinkles on his friends' faces, the slower movements and the fatigue that wasn't there before. Still, he was an adult, and he preferred to turn his gaze away so as not to have to see in the eyes of those dear to him the reflection of those same feelings.
On the other hand, Toga now faced the world and began to understand how cruel it was to those who lived in between. They had been lucky with Muteki because, when he had made the same discovery, he had realized almost immediately that it was not in his power to change the state of things. After a talk with his father, he had been smart enough to know that dwelling on it too much would only prolong the feeling of adequacy. Toga, on the other hand...
This had been going on for weeks already, and the boy's mood wasn't improving even with the best of intentions. Not to mention that, albeit unintentionally, he had hurt his mother more than once, who was struggling to hold back her tears — and Inuyasha hated Kagome's tears.
He sighed again, feeling partly defeated. That day was shaping up to be heavier than he had initially anticipated. "He'll get over it," he said, aware that it wasn't that easy. He had no illusions either. "He'll realize that pouting doesn't do him any good, and he'll get over it. He'll understand that..."
"He'll understand that it doesn't pay to waste his time on useless quarrels," she murmured, her voice low and her face downcast.
Inuyasha grabbed her chin with two fingers and forced her to look him straight in the eye. "Hey, he's always got us, though, doesn't he?"
The question had so many hidden meanings, and Kagome had no trouble finding them in those golden pools. She only nodded, breathless.
"They will always have us," Inuyasha repeated before kissing her head and leading her out of their bedroom.
When they reunited with the rest of the family, they were perfectly composed and ready to face the day.
For the wedding, they had chosen a simple Buddhist ceremony officiated by Miroku himself, by the express request of the bride and groom, in the small Buddhist temple the village had set up shortly after Naraku's defeat when the monk had settled in for good.
Only a few select people were present inside, and Kagome repeatedly had the impression that Miroku struggled not to freeze in the middle of a prayer or speech. Next to her on the bride's side, Sango did not hold back tears as Emi seemed undecided between consoling her mother or being happy for her sister. The still young priestess suppressed a shudder and buried thoughts not appropriate to the moment under a wide smile. She was happy for Kimiko and, above all, she heartily approved of the man she had chosen. But she, like her son, was having a hard time not seeing certain implications that day.
Overall, however, both the ceremony and the celebration that followed was a happy event for friends and family. The bride's parents were happy their daughter would still live in the same village — after all, Kimiko wouldn't have been able to separate from her twin — and they already had a serene relationship with the groom's family. Toga seemed to have forgotten what had been nagging him as he played harmless pranks on the guests with Shippo, and Muteki danced a couple of times with Mariko, before allowing some more timid villager to steal her.
For the occasion, special guests had come to the village; they would be staying with Inuyasha and Kagome that evening to rest before facing the return trip the following day.
Kimiko had insisted on inviting Rin to the wedding since the latter had seen her grow up, and she had immediately agreed. Convincing Sesshomaru, however, had been another matter.
At that time, exactly ten years after the human and the demon had joined for the first time, Rin was entering her seventh month of pregnancy. It was the woman's fourth pregnancy, but the first to make it past the first trimester, and Sesshomaru seemed intent on making sure everything went right this time.
While remaining composed and rigid, he made sure his mate never had to exert herself, always remained seated, and that no one disturbed her. He behaved quite differently than his brother had when Kagome had been the one expecting, yet, in his mannerisms, it was equally clear the enormity of his feeling for her.
In addition, the woman radiated a happiness Kagome had never seen before, which inevitably carried over to the others and primarily Sesshomaru. It seemed the pains of a few years earlier had been forgotten, and the couple was ready to welcome a new phase in their lives. Watching them without being infected by that happiness was difficult, and on the one hand, it made it so strange to juxtapose that feeling with the always cold and composed dai-youkai. Yet, the change in him as well as in his mate was undeniable.
When, finally, the bride and groom were sent off to conclude their celebrations in private, they slowly made their way back to their homes. Kagome exchanged a worried look with her husband, always one full of meaning, and wished the joy of that day would never turn against them.
Kagome and Inuyasha stayed with Sango and Miroku, while their two sons and Shippo went home with Sesshomaru and Rin. It was strange when it was just the four of them, like the old days, with no children and responsibilities that seemed only to increase. Still, it was amazing how easy it was to fall back into almost forgotten habits and become what they once were. And even though life was in some ways easier now, looking back made them think that it had been even simpler then, despite weighting the world on their shoulders.
That evening, in front of a fire to warm them outside and hot drinks to warm them inside, they laughed and joked, recalled important events in their lives and marvelled at how much time had passed.
"But what amazes me most," Inuyasha began again, pointing a clawed finger at Miroku, "is that this bouzu here has managed to live long enough to know what it feels like to have daughters courted by somewhat dubious men." He winked. "And mind you, at the time, I wasn't afraid of the wind vortex taking him out... I'm talking more about the other curse."
And while Kagome, in his arms, burst out laughing without hesitation, Sango seemed undecided between following her friend's example or being sympathetic towards her husband, who was casting unconvincing glances at his best friend.
"Laugh, laugh, my friend. I'll be the one having fun when it's your turn," he snickered, knowing full well Inuyasha's jealous and possessive streak. In some ways, he was so possessive that, on more than one occasion, Miroku and Sango's daughters had also been the victims, and more than one boy had been put off by the idea of having to face not only the girls' father but also a half-demon — not that Miroku minded the help.
Inuyasha shrugged. "You forget that I don't have daughters."
"Oh, and so you think you got away with it?" the monk asked with a smirk. "From the way you and Kagome are still going at it, I'd say the time will come sooner or later." He and his wife had stopped after the sixth child eventually, but all four of them knew that Inuyasha and Kagome, on the other hand, would want at least a couple more.
The couple in question became red to the tips of their ears upon hearing the reference to their sex lives, though, after all those years, they should have been used to the monk's perverted comments. Miroku burst out laughing, glad to no longer be the butt of jokes, but froze when a well-aimed blow from his wife hit him.
"What? What did I say wrong?" he feigned offence. "We all know that when these two have a daughter sooner or later. With a father and brothers like that, the poor thing will have to wait at least 300 years before marrying!" At that point, even Sango couldn't hold back his laughter. "And I'm going to enjoy watching Inuyasha try to chase away all the suitors."
"In fact," chimed in Kagome, who could picture the scene just fine, "I'm afraid of when the time comes. If we were to measure it based on how you act around me..."
"Oi! You're my wife and my mate; if you allow me, it's obvious I keep maniacs like this one away from you," the half-demon barked, only partly serious. Then again, he knew Miroku had had his head screwed on right for ages.
The trip down memory lane continued for a while before the four of them prepared for the night.
But Inuyasha would always remember that evening and its various moments with particular clarity from now on. Above all, years later, the half-demon would think back to his best friend's words and the bittersweet tones given by the realization that time was passing too quickly and there was no stopping it.
A/N: If you're wondering if this chapter makes sense with the rest of the story, well, I assure you that nothing is random and, especially, I wanted to show how previously young characters now face life with a different awareness because they've grown up. Most importantly, in my story, it's also the moment when part-demon children and human children begin to take different paths because of their own nature. I hope you liked it anyway!
Last but not least: I won't be updating the story next Saturday because it's my birthday's weekend and I'll be otherwise occupied. So, I'll see you in two weeks.