Title: Uncertainty
Author: Annie Dolnar
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T
Originally Written: 2009
AN: Hmm, this isn't bad, just a little weird. Especially for a 14 year old, really not the worst thing I could have written. I think I felt like it was unfinished and so I didn't post it, but looking at it now, it seems pretty finished to me.
Uncertainty
Hojo is part of the Japanese police, is married to Kagome Hojo, and has one daughter. He is also cheating on his wife.
Kagome Hojo is an unhappy woman whose love "died" 7 years ago.
And Kiku? Why, she's just a simple Japanese 6 year old girl who is about to discover some things about herself...
This is Uncertainty
"Kiku," Kagome yelled up the stairs. "Come on downstairs. Your bus will be here soon."
Kiku ran as fast as she could. "Mommy, why is the bus coming so early now?"
"The principal was tired of it being late. Hurry and take your lunch, Kiku. I'll see you after school is over. I love you," she said warmly, kissing her daughter on the cheek. Kiku did the same.
"Love you Mommy," she said. "Goodbye!"
With that, Kiku ran out of the house and to her bus stop.
Kagome Hojo sighed. Her husband had left for work already. She would be home alone until Kiku came back.
It had been seven long years since the defeat of Naraku, and the death of her Inuyasha. Though Kagome could still get through the well, she hardly ever did. Only when she went to visit her family by herself or with her daughter only, did she ever even go near the place. Mr. Hojo always had work anyway. When she could get away, she would visit Shippou, Sango, Miroku, and their children, and when Kiku was young enough, she had brought her along. But after Kiku turned three and began to remember things better, Kagome couldn't let her come along anymore.
The Sacred Jewel? Kagome still had it. Wondrously, no demons had come after her since the defeat of Naraku and the death of Inuyasha. It was like they could sense something in her about to break, and were just waiting for that... She wasn't sure. It was pretty weird to her; she had been expecting to die, but Hojo-kun picked her up, decided she looked horrible, and without ever truly asking her, he told her parents they were going to be married NOW, as she didn't look very healthy and he felt she could die any moment.
Kagome had been with Hojo once and only once and that, she believed, was when Kiku was conceived. Of course, there was always the possibility... But that wasn't something she could consider; Kiku had shown no signs of demonic origins. It made Kagome sad, that her daughter was not Inuyasha's as well, so she didn't think about it much.
Even though she wasn't Inuyasha's daughter, Kiku was the light of Kagome's world. Other than Kiku, Kagome had no reason to live.
While she was cleaning the master bathroom, Kagome heard the phone ring. She rushed to it and took the call. "Hello?"
"Kagome, honey, I'm going to be very late getting home. I don't know when I'll make it. Will you be ok without me?"
"OK as ever," Kagome answered dully. Hojo had been staying late for "work" for months now. Kagome had never cared, nor bothered asking why, and she suspected that soon Hojo would stop calling her to tell her.
"Good. I'll see you later, ok?"
"Ok," Kagome said. She didn't say, "I love you". She didn't love Hojo.
"Bye."
Kagome hung up the phone and went back to cleaning the house.
Later, after Kiku had gotten home and the two had watched Cinderella and eaten popcorn, Kiku asked, "Mommy, why is Hojo never home?"
"Don't call him Hojo," Kagome told her daughter. "And he has work to do."
"But Mommy, I can't call him Daddy."
Kagome smiled slightly, to herself. "Why not?"
"Because he doesn't love me. Daddies are supposed to love their kids. Daddy hasn't said he loved me for a long long time."
Kagome frowned now. "He has been busy. I'm sure he loves you, Kiku. Daddy is just gone a lot. You haven't even seen him much since, ah, work got in the way."
Kiku was frowning as well, a sad, lonely frown. "Mommy, are you and Daddy getting a divorce?"
"I don't know," Kagome said, shaking her head. Kiku snuggled close to her.
"Tell me a story, Mommy," she demanded. "About Naraku and Shippou and Sango and the Houshi Miroku, and Koga..."
"Well," Kagome said, beginning the story she had purposely left Inuyasha out of, "A long time ago, in the Feudal Era, there was an evil demon named Naraku. Naraku had shards of the sacred jewel, a jewel that would give him very much power. Lady Kikyo allowed him to gather all of the shards, before dying herself by Naraku's hand."
"Why did Naraku kill her?" asked Kiku. "She helped him get the shards, right?"
"Lady Kikyo said it was part of her plan to destroy him, and Naraku knew this. So he killed her."
Kiku shivered. Kagome went on.
"Sango, Miroku, Kirara, and Shippou traveled near and far searching for Naraku, so they could destroy him and take the sacred jewel, which had become complete inside him. Sango wanted revenge for her little brother, Kohaku, and Kirara has her traveling two-tailed companion. Miroku wanted to get rid of the curse of the wind tunnel. Shippou wanted to help them, even though he was just a little kid. He looked about your age, actually," Kagome said, tweaking Kiku's nose. "All four of them were set on defeating Naraku.
"One day they found him, high in the sky. Together, they combined their powers. Others joined them as well, others who were tired of Naraku's control, humans and demons alike. They came together and destroyed him, and took the sacred jewel.
"With Naraku gone, Sango and Miroku, who were in love, started a life together. Shippou trained to become a great fox kitsune. Kirara went to train with the revived Kohaku."
"And the sacred jewel," Kiku exclaimed. "What happened to it?"
"None of them knew what to do with it. It is said that with the right wish, the jewel would disappear, but they never figured out what that wish was. They tried to revive their lost friends from the battle with Naraku, they tried to wish for happiness and peace for the world, they tried everything. But nothing worked. So they gave it to the next village Miko, helping her protect it and praying that history would never repeat itself."
"Where is it now," Kiku asked excitedly, even though she already knew the answer.
"No one knows," Kagome said dreamily. "It was stolen one day, and no one has ever found it. But the jewel still exists."
"Perhaps," said Kiku, "the right wish can still be made," she said, continuing for Kagome.
"But until the jewel is found,"
"It will never disappear," they said together.
"It's time for bed," said Kagome. "Sweet dreams, Kiku. I hope you find a sacred jewel there."
Kiku smiled and gave her mother a hug and kiss goodnight. "Goodnight Mommy."
"Sleep in, Kiku. It's Saturday tomorrow."
Kiku nodded, and ran off to bed. Kagome crashed on the couch.
"What have I done to myself," she muttered before falling asleep.
The next morning was almost normal. Hojo had snuck in at three in the morning; Kiku had woken up at nine to help her mother make breakfast. The only thing different was Hojo did not have "work" this morning.
"The Christmas party is coming up," he said at the table that breakfast. "Do you have a babysitter for Kiku?"
"Yes, I'm taking her to mother's," said Kagome. Kiku grinned.
"Grandma," she squealed, eating her pancakes (soiled in syrup, of course) happily.
"Are you picking up my suit today?"
"With my dress," Kagome said. "I'm taking Kiku as well."
"That's just fine," said Hojo, and they ate the rest of breakfast in silence.
That afternoon, when Kiku and Kagome went to pick up Hojo's suit and Kagome's dress, Kagome treated them to WacDonalds and Ice Cream. They then stopped by the store for some groceries, and then to Kagome's mother's because Kagome wanted to visit.
Sota, who was home as well, gave Kiku a big hug. "How's my favorite niece?"
"Uncle SOTA!" squealed Kiku. Grandma Higurashi brought her some cookies.
"Now now," she said, "Sota has to study, don't you Sota?"
Sota sighed. "I'll take a day off."
"It's been a very long day, Sota. It almost felt like a week," laughed Grandma Higurashi.
"Are you ready to come stay here tomorrow," Sota asked Kiku. She nodded happily.
"I'm gonna bring all of my crayons," she said, "and draw you a really pretty picture!"
Sota laughed. "And I'll draw YOU a picture too," he said. Sota was studying to be an artist, so naturally his picture would be a thousand times better than Kiku's, but Sota still said hers were better, still complained about every hair out of place in his drawings. He drew them anyway.
The four of them visited for a few hours, and then Kagome noticed the time.
"We have to go," Kagome said, looking at the clock. "We've been gone for five hours now. Poor Kiku is probably tired. I'll see you tomorrow, Mom."
"Goodbye, Kagome," Grandma Higurashi said. Sota gave Kiku and his sister a goodbye hug as well, and disappeared to study the minute they left the house.
Kagome texted Hojo, "I'm on my way home," started the car, and left.
The next evening, the evening of the Christmas party, Kagome was ready to go, and so was Kiku. Some part of her knew this would be her last Christmas party with Hojo, and she wanted to get it over with. Kagome drove Kiku to her mother's on her own, and then came back for Hojo, who drove to the Christmas party.
The Christmas party was packed with police of all kinds, but there was still beer there. There was always beer at Christmas parties. Beer and other things.
While Hojo got drunk and Kagome pretended to drink, she sat down at a table and stayed there, no matter what dancing Hojo tried to force her into. It was almost over, before she noticed something in the window. A golden eye, followed by silvery white hair and a red jumpsuit-like outfit. When she looked back, it was gone.
Automatically, Kagome suppressed tears. I'm going crazy, she thought. Maybe I'm not even safe around my child anymore.
But even as she was thinking that, she was also sure she had seen Inuyasha in the window.
"Hojo?" she said. "I need some fresh air. I'll be back soon."
Kagome didn't note that he was dancing rather dirtily with another woman. She had been ignoring it for so long, she didn't even care. Hojo ignored her anyway.
Outside, Kagome searched around the building for Inuyasha but saw no one. At that point, she was beginning to believe she was crazy. But even if it was a ghost she was seeing, she had to know.
After searching to no avail, Kagome sat on the steps and started to cry; sobbing that she was going crazy. When her tears had dried, she went back in and told Hojo to find a ride home because she couldn't stay any longer. She went straight to Grandma Higurashi's.
"Hey sis," said Sota. "What's wrong?"
"I'm going crazy," she sobbed. "I was sure I saw Inuyasha, but he wasn't there. I was only seeing things. I'm going crazy..."
"Oh," Sota said, a weird look on his face. "Yeah... He died..."
Kagome cried harder, while her mother and brother comforted her half-heartedly. Kiku was in bed already. Kagome stayed the night there as well.
In the morning, Kiku was shocked to see her puffy eyed mother at the breakfast table. Nevertheless, she said, "Mommy, I drew you a picture."
"Let's see it," Kagome said, trying to smile. Sota bit his lip.
"I, um, put it in her room," he said. "I'll show you where I put it, Kiku, come on."
The two of them left, Sota somewhat tense. They came back a few minutes later with a picture of a flower.
"Oh, look," Kagome said, "it's so pretty, Kiku."
Kiku nodded proudly. Sota looked relieved.
"Let's eat," Mrs. Higurashi stated, and set the table with food.
"So," said Kagome, "how was last night?"
"We had a friend over," Kiku exclaimed, and Sota made crazy motions for her to shut up from across the table.
"A friend?" Kagome asked, not noticing Sota. "What was his name?"
"Um," said Kiku, watching Sota hold up the quiet sign. "I don't know," she said.
"Oh," said Kagome.
"He knew you though," she exclaimed, and Sota hit his head on the table. "He drew me a picture of you."
"Oh really?" said Kagome. "Can I see?"
"He drew two pictures," Mrs. Higurashi muttered under her breath. Kagome caught it though.
"Show me both," she said. Mrs. Higurashi and Sota looked horrified.
"Uh, we lost them," said Sota.
"No we didn't," exclaimed Kiku before she realized what Sota meant. Kagome frowned.
"What are you not telling me," she demanded. "What was the man's name, Mom? Sota?"
Mrs. Higurashi sighed. "I'll get you the pictures," she said. "The other picture he drew, he left on accident. I don't think he meant for Sota and I to see it."
"There was another picture?" Kiku exclaimed excitedly. "I wanna see!"
"It's not suitable for children," Sota said firmly, his face twisted into a kind of pained horror.
Mrs. Higurashi brought out the sketches. "Here," she said.
The first one was a picture of Kagome in her school uniform, surrounded by trees. She was smiling at the sky, eyes closed. It was an amazing drawing, almost as good as Sota.
The second picture caused Kagome to lose the calm the first one gave her.
It was of Kagome, yes. But she was totally naked; completely bare. It looked exactly like her naked body, too; every precise detail was correct.
Kagome stared at the picture, first horrified, then curious, then raving mad. "Who. Drew. This."
Kiku had never seen her mother so angry. "The man did it," she said timidly. Sota looked afraid.
"What was his name, Souta?" Kagome asked, a fiery look in her eyes. "Who was the pervert that did this?"
"I-I don't know!" Souta yelped. "He didn't say his name! We didn't recognize him; we-"
Souta stopped. Kagome had begun packing Kiku's things. She had balled up the drawing, and looked as if she was contemplating setting it on fire. "I have to be going crazy. First... Him, and now this. Who did this? Who could possibly know this?"
"M-Mommy?" Kiku said carefully. "Are we leaving?"
"Yes, Kiku," said Kagome. "We are leaving. Tell your grandma and Uncle Souta goodbye; we may not be seeing them for a few weeks. I need a vacation."
"Sister, you have to be taking this way out of proportion," Souta exclaimed. "I- If we ever see that pervert again, we'll call the police, kay?"
Kagome turned to look at him. "I am being stalked," she explained plainly. "Neither I nor my daughter are safe while I am being stared at naked, who knows what this man could do? He could have kidnapped my daughter. He could have kidnapped me. So yes, if you find him, please call the police, and explain that I have had enough troubles for a lifetime. Inuyasha dead-" here, Kagome missed the look Sota and her mother exchanged and the confusion in her daughter's eyes- "my husband cheating on me, my daughter being neglected by her father."
"He's not my father," stated Kiku clearly. Kagome sighed.
"We've had this talk already, Kiku. Mr. Hojo IS your father, and I'm sorry if you'd rather think otherwise, because I would too. But he is, and you are, and we must go. Come on, now."
"But-" Kiku tried to argue.
"No, Kiku," Souta said, defeated. "It's best this way."
Kagome wasted no time on Sota's confusing words. She dressed her daughter into her coat, hat, and shoes, said goodbye to her mother and brother, and left the house.
"Where are we going, Mommy," asked Kiku tentatively.
"To the house, first," said Kagome. "Only to leave a note for your father and pack some more. Then we will take a few busses, a few trains... You'll see. I have to show you... I have to explain..."
She stopped and bit her lip. Kiku frowned, and then pulled a box of crayons, a piece of paper, and a clipboard out of her bag. She pulled out a red crayon, then hesitated, then put it back. She then pulled out a blue crayon, hesitated, and put it back again.
So much like Shippou, thought Kagome, recalling how Shippou would sometimes not know what to draw, and hesitantly pull out and put back crayons. After a few minutes of this, Kiku put her drawing things away all together and fell asleep.
At the house, Kagome did not turn off her car. She left it on for Kiku, and ran inside only to grab a pre-packed bag, one she had always kept in case of emergency, for both her and Kiku. Hojo didn't answer when she called, as she expected, so she left a message saying she had to take off for two weeks, hoping he would understand, saying it was an emergency, because "a close family member had died". She said she knew Hojo couldn't leave, so she was just taking Kiku with her for company. She asked that he please call the school and tell them Kiku would be gone because of a family emergency.
After all this was done, Kagome grabbed some pocky and other treats out of the pantry, and ran back to the car.
Kiku was still asleep when she returned.
"Oh, Kiku," Kagome whispered. Even though they lived in a good neighborhood, were living a middle-class life, and had a very nice home, she couldn't help feeling like her daughter was missing something she had wanted to give her for a very long time. Because Hojo hardly counted as a father, even though he was, Kiku was right. Hojo wasn't her father; not by a long shot. He wasn't meant to be her father, to be the sire of Kagome's child. He didn't really belong with them anyhow. Kagome supposed he knew this, because he stayed away from the two of them constantly.
Kagome regretted that he really was Kiku's father. There was no other explanation for her, was there? Kiku was born nine months after their honeymoon night. Right? Wasn't that how many months she was pregnant? Yes... It had to be. She remembered clearly having sex for the last time, and Kiku being the outcome. She remembered that she had been half drunk, and that there had been no passion on her side, just insaneness that came from being married less than a month after her true love died.
"Three busses, two trains, one airplane, two hotels."
It was late Tuesday night, and Kiku and Kagome were eating dinner in a small Motel they had found. Kagome had lead Kiku to believe they were very far away from home, but in reality they were two blocks away from the shrine.
"What?" said Kagome, in response to her daughter's remark.
"That's what we've been doing since we left Grandma," she explained. "Three busses, two trains, one airplane, two hotels."
Kagome smiled. "Draw them for me Kiku. What did those three busses, two trains, one airplane, and two hotels look like?"
Kiku did not smile back. In fact, she looked rather depressed. "We've been doing nothing," she lamented. "I wanna go ho-home. Or back to Grandma's. Can we go back to Grandma's, Mommy?"
Kagome frowned sadly. Of course she couldn't just drag her daughter around the world, as it certainly seemed that way to Kiku, for her whole life. Of course Kiku would be homesick.
"Kiku," Kagome said, moving to sit by her, "Do you want a family? A real family, not like you have with your father and me?"
Kiku pouted. "I want grandma, not Mr. Hojo."
Kagome smiled again. "We'll go see her again soon, Kiku. I'm going to take you to a real home first, and in a week or two we will go see her, Ok honey?"
"But," Kiku wondered, frowning again, "we have a home already."
Hugging her daughter, Kagome said warmly, "Let's get going, Kiku. Go pack your things."
Pouting again, Kiku packed her things for the eighth time. Her mother was already packed, so she helped. In fact, she stuck Kiku's back pack in her own this time and picked up a very tired Kiku, holding her while she checked out of the Motel. She carried the sleeping girl to the car, and laid her down. Kiku was still asleep when they arrived at the Shrine.
Kagome wrote her mother a note, saying to leave the car here and tell Hojo she had driven Kagome and Kiku to the airport, in case he came looking for them. Then she picked up her still-sleeping daughter and carried her into the well house.
Kiku woke up when her mother set her down on the cold stone well house floor. She was resituating the backpack, and it was very dark.
"Mommy?" she whispered. "I'm scared."
"Oh, Kiku," said Kagome, "it'll be O.K., darling. Do you remember Shippou and Sango and Miroku and Kirara?"
"Ya," she said, wiping her sleepy eyes.
Kagome smiled. "Hold tight," she said, picking her up and stepping up to the well. Kiku saw that her mommy was wearing strange clothes. But before she could say anything, Kagome jumped in.
For a moment, Kiku tried to scream, but she was too paralyzed. It wasn't long before she realized she had never hit the floor of the well that she and her mommy were not in total darkness anymore.
"M-Mommy?" Kiku asked, afraid. Suddenly a head poked out up above. It was the head of a cat, but Kiku still hid in her mother's shoulder. Kagome chuckled quietly.
"Kirara," she said, "you've come to help us out, haven't you?"
Kirara mewed. Kiku looked at her in wonder, watching her fall gently beside Kagome and transform into a demon cat, at which she hid again.
"Don't be afraid, Kiku," Kagome said gently. "Climb on."
Slowly, Kiku climbed from her mother to the demon cat. Kagome climbed on behind her, and Kirara easily jumped out of the well.
Kiku shut her eyes again, as they were flying over a forest now. When she opened them, they were still up in the air, but she was less afraid. Tentatively, she held her arms out like she was flying. She even laughed.
"Mommy," she squealed, "this is fun!"
They landed in a small, ancient-times looking village. The thing was, it didn't look old. It looked rather... New. Like it had been built and rebuilt recently. Kiku's eyes widened.
"Kirara," she whispered, taking in the name, the form. Kagome and Kiku climbed off, and Kirara transformed again, jumping into Kiku's arms. She giggled while she pet her.
"We're here," said Kagome. "Finally."
A man and woman left their hut, sleepily rubbing their eyes. A few children followed after, as well as a boy with red hair and funny-looking feet.
"Kagome!" the boy squealed, jumping into her arms. He was exactly as Kagome remembered him; he still looked seven years old, wore the same exact clothes, and had a blue bow in his hair.
"Ah, Kagome," said the man. "It's nice to see you again."
The woman, whose children were hiding behind her, smiled. "It is. Welcome back, Kagome."
"Sango, Miroku, Shippou, Kirara," Kiku's mother said, tears in her eyes. "I am so happy to see you."
"Mommy!" exclaimed Kiku, "it's the people from your story!"
Kagome laughed. "Yes, Kiku. It is. All of them are here."
"All of them?" Miroku asked, confused.
"ALL of them," Kagome said firmly. "And there's something else, Kiku," she said, pulling out a necklace, followed by an attached round marble-like pink jewel.
Kiku's eyes widened. "The-the sacred jewel!" she exclaimed. "You found it!"
"I've had it," Kagome corrected her. "I've had it since the defeat of Naraku."
"You're the Miko from the story!"
"That's right," said Kagome. "And more. There is more to this story, but for now, let's get some rest."
Sango nodded. "Come on," she said, "you can stay with us tonight."
For the rest of the week, Kiku had the time of her life.
She played with Shippou and the other children in the river.
She rode Kirara all over the place, before she returned to Kohaku, anyway.
She gathered herbs with Kaede and Rin, who was told not to mention Inuyasha or Kikyo for obvious reasons.
And she giggled and smiled and asked her idols all her unanswered questions, none of which were perverted. Except "where do babies come from?".
To which Miroku was slapped, Shippou and Kiku giggled, and Kagome sighed and told Kiku she would tell her when she was older.
She also shared crayons with Shippou, who was better at drawing than he had been before, as he had practiced constantly. He was almost as good as Souta.
She never even noticed Kagome's worried conversations with Sango and Miroku.
"Why did you bring her back here, Kagome," Sango asked the day after they arrived. "You know she won't want to keep this a secret from her own father. Surly you also know that she will be tied to this world forever, since she knows it exists?"
Kagome shook her head. "I always left Inuyasha out of the story. I realized a few days ago... It wasn't right for me to do that. No matter how pained I was, I can't let his memory be destroyed. It was too late to say, "oh yeah, and there was a Hanyou who saved everyone's butt about ten times a day". I can't forget him, Sango, and I can't let him be forgotten. It just... It's not right to him. And he is most remembered here."
"But she does not belong to him," said Sango sadly. "She is the son of Hojo. Because you and Inuyasha, you never..."
Kagome bit her lip, closed her eyes, and stared at the floor. "No," she murmured, "but he, at least, would have been a real father to her. Hojo ignores us half the time, he doesn't love her, and she's not his daughter, whether he sired her or not. She's Inuyasha's, spiritually."
Suddenly Miroku walked in and handed Sango some food to prepare for the kids, causing an awkward silence that ended only when the children came in to eat.
The next day's conversation was just as bad.
Kagome had sent Kiku off to play, and Sango had gone away for a short bath. Miroku sat down beside her as she watched the children play from just outside the hut.
"You miss him very much, don't you Lady Kagome?" he asked quietly.
"Yes," she sighed. "I do. I always will."
Miroku frowned. "Why bring her back now? Sango told me about your motives, but why now?"
Kagome sighed again. "I've been seeing him everywhere. Well, I guess not everywhere; I only saw him at the Christmas party. But it was sort of a wake-up call, telling me not to forget. He was telling me not to forget about him. And I realized I've been trying to pretend he never existed. I rewrote our whole story without him in it, and told it to Kiku like he was never there."
"You were... Seeing him?" Miroku asked worriedly.
"I was going to go completely insane," explained Kagome, "if I didn't quit trying to forget. I never even allowed myself time to grieve for him, Miroku. I was swept right into a marriage and a pregnancy, into Kiku and Hojo. I suppose he wouldn't have been happy with me... Inuyasha, I mean."
Miroku nodded uncertainly. "I... See..."
Kagome knew he didn't understand.
Morning came of the next day, and Sango and Miroku were getting worried. They cornered Kagome under Goshinboku while Kiku was out gathering herbs with Kaede.
"Kagome," Sango said, somewhat sternly, "you said you came here to remember Inuyasha, yet you haven't even mentioned him when Kiku is around. What is wrong?"
"Yes, Kagome," agreed Miroku, "what is it?"
Kagome gritted her teeth. "You... You don't know... I need a little more time," she said, pained.
After hearing the pain and sadness in her voice, Miroku and Sango backed off, and resolved not to push anything out of Kagome until it got ridiculous. UNLESS it got ridiculous.
Kiku, meanwhile, had just cut herself on a rosebush.
She had squealed excitedly at the sight of the flowers and rushed to them, hoping to pick some for her mother. Instead, she winded up with a prick on her right index finger. Kaede was too far away to hear her soft cry.
Ouch, she thought, sucking her finger, eyes threatening tears. She reached over into her pocket, where her mother usually put emergency bandages, but was startled when her hand was caught by a friend.
"You don't need those," said the man beside her quietly. "At least, I don't believe you do. I could be wrong, of course. Does that even hurt?"
Kiku squealed, which told him no. "MR.-"
"Shhhh," the man whispered, looking around. "Not so loud, Kiku, or there'll be questions to answer. Now," he said, pulling out a handkerchief, "press it with this, and let's see..."
Kiku tenderly did as she was told, and was not surprised to see the wound was still bleeding, but was only the size of a paper cut now, and was healing rapidly. To the man's surprise, Kiku gave him a worried look. "What am I supposed to be watching, Mr.-"
"Shh," he said, "just call me Mr. And does your Mom know you heal so fast?"
"I dunno," said Kiku, bewildered. "I don't get scratched a lot.
"Oh," he said, smiling slightly. That's my girl, he thought.
"Mr.- uh, Mr., what did you draw that upset Mommy?"
'Mr.' frowned again. "What?"
"Something you drew that they wouldn't let me see made Mommy really mad at Uncle Souta and Grandma. She said something about a stalker."
Frantically, 'Mr.' began to search himself down, swearing when he came up with nothing. "Dammit," he cursed, "she saw the picture?"
"Yeah. That's not a nice word, Mr."
'Mr.' smiled apologetically. "Stupid me," he muttered.
"That's a bad word too," Kiku said matter-of-factly, frowning.
"Kiku," called Kaede, "are ye back there?"
Mr. swore again, earning another glare from Kiku. "I have to go," he said. "You can't tell anyone I'm here, O.K. Kiku?"
Kiku nodded. Mr. was about to disappear, but he heard Kiku's soft voice. "Mr.?" it whispered.
"Yes?" he asked quietly.
"Can I call you Daddy?"
He froze.
"I-" Kiku stuttered after he was silent for a moment. "I'm sorry, Mr."
"No, it's O.K.," he said, pained slightly. "But you have a Daddy, Kiku."
Kiku shook her head. "He's not my Daddy. I know it. He doesn't love me, Mr.; he never says so or shows it. He never hugs me. You do. Uncle Souta does. Mommy does, and Grandma does."
Normally, he would have said something like "bug off". Maybe a few years ago, that would have been his exact reply. But Kiku... Hojo was no father to her. He acted like one. Of course she would ask... And from what he had gathered, Hojo wasn't blood-related to Kiku, either.
"Ok, Kiku," he said with a small smile. "If you want... You can call me Daddy."
Kiku smiled as her "Daddy" bolted away from a Spanish Inquisition.
"Kiku?" asked Kaede, appearing out of the trees and finding Kiku sitting on the ground. She breathed. "Why didn't ye answer?"
"I found roses," smiled Kiku. "I wanted to pick them for Mommy."
Kaede had a peculiar expression. They're the same color as the fire rat robe, she thought, the exact shade of red...
Kiku ignored Kaede's startled-ness and began to carefully cut the stems of the flowers with her fingernails. Kaede's expression became even more peculiar. "How are ye doing thus," she asked.
"Oh, this?" asked Kiku, "I always do this when I don't have scissors."
"Sci-sors. I'm not even going to try to understand," she muttered, and took a knife and began to cut the stems of other, different colored roses. I'm going crazy...
Back at Sango and Miroku's hut, Kiku and Kaede had arrived back. Kiku ran to her mother and gave her the red roses she had found. Kagome put a hand on her heart and took a sharp breath.
"They're the same color," she whispered.
"As what?" asked Kiku. She had something in mind, but she didn't know her mother was thinking the same thing. Kagome's face became determined suddenly.
"Kiku," she said, "I... I have something to tell you."
They were all alone in the hut. There was no better time, no better place. It had to be now. Especially the roses... They were another sign. Inuyasha wanted to be remembered. It was her job not to forget.
"I... I traveled with Miss Sango, Mr. Miroku, Shippou-chan, and Kirara to gather sacred jewel shards when I was fifteen," Kagome admitted
Kiku nodded. "I know, Mommy," she said, "but why didn't you tell me before?" she asked curiously.
Kagome sighed. "I thought... I thought it would be better," she laughed nervously, "but it wasn't. I'm going to start from the very beginning, Kiku. The real story, as it really happened. And I wasn't the only one I left out."
Kiku nodded again. "Listen closely," her mother said.
Five hundred and fifty years ago, there lived a beautiful but sad priestess named Kikyo.
Now, Kikyo had been given the sacred Shikon jewel to protect from demons. She was one of the most powerful mikos that ever existed, one of the greatest archers of her time. She loved the village children very much, and protected the rest of the villagers with everything she had.
One day, while she was walking, she caught sight of a half dog demon. He was a lonely hanyou, who had lived his life belonging nowhere. Humans would not take him because he had demon blood, demons would not take him because he had human blood. No one could love him, or so he thought, before he met Kikyo. He and Kikyo fell in love, and planned to use the Shikon jewel for a pure wish: to turn Inuyasha human so that he and Kikyo could live a long, happy life with each other, never to worry about the jewel again. She saw him as a lover, friend, and way out of her situation. He loved her dearly and protected her. It was the perfect match.
But then came Onigumo. She found him dying one day, having barely survived a fire. He was badly burnt from head to toe. Kikyo took him in and tried to nurse him back to health, however Onigumo had lustful thoughts for Kikyo. He allowed himself to be devoured by demons so he would live forever, and take Kikyo with him. The demon created within him did not care for this idea, however. He took the form of the hanyou and betrayed her, then took the form of Kikyo herself to betray the hanyou. This caused the real hanyou and priestess to hate each other, like a fire being set in a forest, with gasoline all over. They didn't trust each other enough to realize they were being tricked.
Priestess Kikyo, in her despair and pain, went after the hanyou. She pinned him to the God Tree, Goshinboku, and then died herself from a wound inflicted on her by the ex-Onigumo.
The ex-Onigumo renamed himself Naraku, and for the next fifty years he wreaked havoc on many people and villages, including the monk Miroku's grandfather and bunches of others. After this fifty year period, a mysterious new priestess came from the well. She is said to have come from five hundred years into the future.
This new priestess was being chased by an evil centipede demon. The centipede demon had brought her through the well, and had caused her to end up in Kaede's village. Kaede took a look at her, and proclaimed that she was the reincarnation of Priestess Kikyo. At this moment, the centipede found her in the village. The new priestess was again chased, this time to Goshinboku and to the hanyou.
Fearing for her life and wondering if the villagers were going to save her at all, the girl called for help, and awoke the long-asleep hanyou. At first, he thought she was the priestess Kikyo, and was preparing to kill her, until he realized he was still bound to the tree and that there was a centipede demon chasing after the girl that she wasn't attacking back. He said, "You look pretty dumb there, Kikyo. The Kikyo I know wouldn't waste her time."
At this, the priestess lost her cool. "My name is Kagome," she cried. "Ka-Go-Me!"
Finally, the hanyou smelt her more closely. His face turned from one of hatred, to a look of surprise, and then to confusion. "You're not… Kikyo," he spit out.
Kagome sniffed. "That's right," she said.
The hanyou looked to his side, downcast. "You're right," he said. "Kikyo was cuter. Much cuter."
Before Kagome could be angry with him, the centipede attacked her again. It didn't take long before the hanyou asked her if she could free him, for the centipede had knocked the Shikon jewel out of her body.
When the hanyou was freed, he attacked and killed the centipede, and Kagome took back the sacred jewel that had been stolen from her. However, it was then that the hanyou showed his true colors. He demanded to be given the jewel, threatening Kagome's life. At this, the old priestess Kaede cast a rosary upon him with a spell on him, which caused him to fall to the ground anytime Kagome said "sit".
In the beginning, Inuyasha shadowed Kagome at all times, destroying any demon that came near. It wasn't long before Kagome had gotten herself into a trap, which consisted of a bird that stole the jewel from her. She and Inuyasha chased the bird, but could not get to it until the hanyou managed to cut off one of its legs. Because the sacred jewel drew severed limbs of a jewel holder back together, Kagome took the leg and tied it to a bow and arrow. She then shot it at the demon.
Although Kagome managed to hit the demon, her arrow hit the sacred jewel and caused it to shatter. This began a long, agonizing search for the jewel shards, which ultimately caused the friendship between Kagome and the hanyou.
Along this journey, they met Sango, Miroku, and Shippou. The hanyou and the priestess were involved in much more of the story than I have made it sound like. Usually, the hanyou destroyed the demons. Kagome provided food.
Sometime after the jewel had been shattered, the priestess Kikyo was raised from the dead by an evil sorceress. Kikyo, who still held the hanyou's affections despite Kagome entering the picture, often unwillingly caused pain in Kagome's heart and fights with the hanyou. It wasn't until Kikyo had died again and the hanyou's duty to her was done that he and Kagome finally expressed that they had feelings for each other.
"K-Kagome?"
Kagome turned to the voice, too quickly. She fell on her butt.
"Wh-who-" she stuttered, unable to believe it. He was standing in front of her, clad completely in red, just as she remembered. Kagome blinked a few times, before noticing the pain in the man's eyes.
"Kagome," he whispered.
Kagome scooted backward as if afraid. "D-don't come any closer, demon!"
Inuyasha looked more pained than before. "I-"
"D-don't," she screamed, shutting her eyes. "Y-you're sick, you know that? Wh-why would you do this to me?"
Inuyasha stepped back. "You really are over me now, then? You don't want me anymore..."
Kagome looked horrified. "What did you expect? To marry me? Why would I marry a demon impersonating Inuyasha, when he has been dead for seven years, and I know this? Either that," she said, rather put out, "or I'm going crazy. And I can't go crazy. I have a daughter I must take care of."
He was still for a moment. "Dead?"
"Yes," she said, pained, "so please stop. It hurts enough to know that he never knew... Never knew who his daughter was. Especially that I never knew, I..."
"Idiot," he said, inching closer to her once more. Kagome slid backward automatically. "Stop babbling, Kagome," he whispered. . He stepped closer again, and this time Kagome found her way blocked by a tree.
Kagome felt somewhat cornered as Inuyasha came closer. "Leave me, demon!" she cried. "D-don't make me use my purification powers."
Inuyasha sighed. "Come on, Kagome, you can't be that stupid," he said, and since he was close enough, he pinned her hands to her sides. She struggled against him with angry eyes.
"You're definitely a demon," she growled, "and not a figment of my imagination, or a dream… I can't get up," she cried angrily. "Let me up."
"You are Kagome Higurashi," growled Inuyasha. "Married to Hojo, although I wish you weren't. You should be married to me.
"We finally said how we really felt about each other about a month before the defeat of Naraku. The night before we killed him, we did… It. The beautiful outcome of this was our daughter, who you thought for a long time was Hojo's daughter, since she was a ten-month baby. Not mine. When you were fifteen, you fell through the well and freed me from Goshinboku. I tried to kill you in response, but Kaede cursed me with a rosary that caused me to fall on my face any time you said sit.
"We became friends shortly after that. We fell in love, but we refused to admit it to each other. Kikyo was raised from the dead, and tried to take me to hell. You saw. You called my name, and saved me.
"Please, Kagome," pleaded Inuyasha. "It's me."
Kagome refused to breathe or think, and wouldn't have gotten a chance to in the first place, because in that moment Inuyasha's lips met hers and everything else disappeared as she shut her eyes and let herself be lost in the kiss.