Ceremony
Kagome followed Sesshoumaru as they, and the other guests, walked in a procession through the dense forest, following a trail that winded up the small mountain behind the sprawling mansion. After glancing at the other guests, she noticed most of them appeared to be kitsune but in varied forms.
Some looked more human like Shippo, save for the paws and tails they sported. Some kitsune looked like walking upright foxes dressed in people clothing. Why where there so many differences in appearance? Everything she knew about kitsune was directly from Shippo, and since he was just a child, it really didn't help much. Would he be at the wedding too? Was he from either of these clans? Her eyes scanned the crowd looking for his face.
A few humans walked among the kitsune, smiling brightly as they chatted with them as if they were old family friends. Kagome was used to being surrounded by youkai, but to see normal looking people at ease was startling. Usually people ran in fear of youkai. She couldn't feel any holy or demonic energy from them either. So what dealings did they have with kitsune?
Despite everyone's different appearances, one thing that everyone had in common was that they carried an umbrella.
The dirt path wound up and up through the forest for about a mile. Kagome delighted in smell of the cedar trees, and the warm sunshine on her face. It was such a perfect day. A slight breeze even carried up the mountain cooling them off.
The trees thinned out gradually until a large open grass field revealed itself. Humans and youkai threaded into the clearing, and took seats in a semi-circle around a large flat boulder.
Sesshoumaru wrapped an arm around her shoulder and led her to a spot to the right of the stone table. He watched with admiration as she gracefully swept the hem of her kimono back, and knelt down with ease. Why did he find that simple movement, so mesmerizing?
She was so relaxed that her holy aura hummed against his skin in a pleasing manner. Her eyes glowed with vitality and happiness. It was so vexing that she could be excited to be around hundreds of obnoxious kitsune.
She smiled at him warmly and patted the ground next to her. He handed her the umbrella before sitting beside her.
After a few minutes, all the guests had been seated in neat rows surrounding the center.
As if by some cue that Kagome had missed, everyone snapped open their umbrellas in a flash of color. She panicked and fumbled to open their red umbrella. With a shake, the umbrella popped open, much to her relief. Her body tensed with expectation. She looked around them. Where was the rain? Her hand peeked out to feel any rain, but she felt nothing so she tilted her head out from under the umbrella to look at the blue sky.
A boom of thunder sounded across the clearing, and rattled the ground beneath them. Kagome jumped back and grabbed Sesshoumaru's arm. He raised a delicate eyebrow in question. Her heartbeat had sped up. The corner of his mouth rose up. Sesshoumaru leaned down, and whispered against her ear.
"Is it normal for mikos to be afraid of thunder?"
Kagome punched his arm. "I'm not afraid!" She hissed back.
With a small cool breeze, gentle rain began to fall around them, and she could hear the light tapping against the rice paper topped umbrellas. She leaned in closer to him in order save him from getting wet. Her heart leapt into her throat, when his arm came around his midsection and pulled her flush against his side.
A steady drum beat began, drawing everyone's attention to the center aisle. Four kitsune entered the clearing carrying a decorated palanquin covered in lush pink and red camellia blooms. The doors opened and the groom climbed out first. Kagome had been expecting a red-headed fox much like the other guests, but the groom had short stark white hair, and a white tail behind him. He stood tall and confident in his traditional black and white wedding clothing. He held out a hand to his bride, who took his help graciously, and stepped down out of the carriage.
The bride was stunning. Dark red curls adorned with pearls fell down her back. Her eyes were light purple, and lined with charcoal. Her sharp cheek bones made her look cunning. Her gold uchikake was heavily embroidered with red, blue, and pink flowers, while two foxes danced together across her back. She was beautiful in such an otherworldly way. It was no wonder that in the old folk stories, kitsune would trick humans into marrying them; only to find out they were foxes later.
Kagome knew in this time period that arranged marriages were common, particularly among the elite, but seeing the glowing happiness that surrounded the bride and groom, she couldn't help but think that this was a true love match.
Two male kitsune, who appeared older simply due to their rough appearance, walked down the aisle first. They both wore expensive silk clothing for the occasion, but they were as different as night and day. The kitsune who went first had short shaggy black hair that looked like it had tried to be tamed, but had failed to rein in its wildness. A scar went from his forehead to under his left eye, giving him a menacing glare. His mood seemed to reflect his look; his salt and pepper beard covered much of his face, but did nothing to conceal his frown. He looked as though this wedding was the last place he wanted to be. The kitsune who followed him had long auburn hair pulled back neatly behind him. He was clean-shaven, and you could see his smile a mile away. He grinned and held his head up proudly as they proceeded down the aisle.
The deep rich sound of the drum and the high pitter patter of rain against umbrellas was all the music the procession needed as the bride and groom held hands and walked together in even steps down the aisle When the couple reached the two elders, they bowed low at the waist. The four youkai turned and faced their guests.
"Today, the Yuudai clan shall join the Atsushi clan, uniting the western kitsunes into one clan!" The clean-shaven kitsune announced to the crowd. "I am Yuudai no Kano, and I present my son, Hajime, as our new leader and symbol of our unity."
"I am Atsushi no Ogawa. I present my daughter, Kiyomi, to wed your son as a token of faith in our alliance." The gruff bearded youkai recited loudly.
Kano smiled and patted him on the back jovially, and motioned forward, as if for him to finish.
"And may our families forever be intertwined." Ogawa ground out through clenched teeth. His daughter smiled at him with unspoken understanding.
The drum beat stopped, and the crowd gasped as a golden nine-tailed kitsune in its full fox form walked down the aisle toward the couple. Everyone, including the couple and the guests bowed to him. Sesshoumaru, of course, gave the golden kitsune no such honor. Kagome stared with wonder. His fur coat glistened in the sun and his eyes glowed an eerie green. She had heard many folk stories of nine-tailed kitsune, but she had never seen or met one during her travels in the past. Legend states that the nine-tailed kitsune could be thousands of years old, and possess infinite wisdom.
When the golden kitsune reached the couple, his body began to glow as he transformed. Kagome covered her eyes as a blinding flash of light covered the clearing. She lowered her hands to see a tall man standing in the fox's place. He had long golden blonde hair, and his nine tails swayed in an arch behind him. Kagome was expecting an old youkai like Tortuga, but he looked as though he were in his forties, if she judged him by human years. He turned around, throwing his sharp green-eyed gaze across the audience.
"May our ancestors bless this wonderful day!" He held his hands in the air and addressed the crowd. There were barks and yips of agreement from the surrounding kitsune.
His gaze landed on her and Kagome froze. His energy slid over her sending chills across her body. She kept a tight lid on her reiki, just as Manako had instructed her. She closed her eyes, and avoided looking at him, hoping the sensation would pass. Warm familiar youki wrapped around her then, pushing back the chilling invasive kitsune. She opened her eyes to see Sesshoumaru glaring at the golden kitsune with open contempt. Immense gratitude towards the grumpy daiyoukai beside her filled her heart.
When the golden kitsune turned his attention back towards the wedding couple; She let out deep breath. What was that about?
The bride and groom held up their conjoined hands before the nine tailed kitsune. He pulled a red ribbon from his robe, and tied it around their hands.
"May you be blessed."
The couple faced the guests and held up their hands and together they spoke, "We take our marriage vow respectfully before our ancestors. We are overjoyed to be able to take our vows on this day and to become husband and wife through the blessing of our elders. We swear before our clan to love and respect each other forever and to strive to bring our family prosperity."
The golden kitsune held out a cup for them to drink. The bride looked over the rim of her cup shyly, as he husband watched her take a sip first. He winked at her, before taking a sip for himself.
With a clap of thunder, the rain stopped.
"I declare you husband and wife!" The nine tails shouted.
The crowd cheered as Hajime pulled Kiyomi close and kissed her softly.
Kagome's heart hurt at the sight of their open affection. She missed Inuyasha so acutely in that moment. Her husband had never been romantic. He didn't even propose to her, but she knew that he loved her. He showed her his love when he would care for her when she was sick. He showed his love when he waited by the well every three days, hoping for her return. He showed his love for her when he built their small home. She knew that he would be there for her, even in her darkest moments.
She missed sharing her life and love with someone else. Would she ever have that again?
She turned her head to Sesshoumaru beside her. His face was blank with certain boredom as he watched as guests lined up to congratulate the new couple. It seemed unlikely, but would he ever be the romantic type? It was pretty hard to imagine what it would be like to be wooed by Sesshoumaru. She had serious doubts that he even knew how to woo someone. Would he bring her the severed heads of her enemies as a token of his affection? A grin spread across her face, and she stifled a snicker. Really, that's not such a bad idea.
His eyes slid to her.
"What?"
Her grin disappeared with effort. She leaned over on Sesshoumaru and laid her head against his shoulder.
"Nothing." She sighed.
xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Author's Note:
WOO! There is a lot more in store for our poor unlikely couple in the next few chapters. Originally this is not how the storyline was supposed to progress, but my best friend Saruwarui suggested the folk lore of a kitsune wedding, and I loved the idea so much I ran with it. I did some research into the legend, so I could incorporate as much of it as possible into the story.
There are two central legends about Kitsune weddings. The first one is that kitsune only have weddings during sunshowers. The second one is that they have weddings at night (which was when traditional weddings were held), and fox fire would light the way for the procession. People who were walking around at night, particularly near mountains, might see the glowing lights from the wedding procession. Depending on the region it was witnessed, it could be seen as a good omen, or a bad one.
If you would like to learn more about fox weddings, I suggest reading this article from hyakumonogatari . com and searching for Kitsune no Yomeiri. It has some wonderful stories, legends, and artwork depicting the wedding.
Thank you so much for the reviews!