Hanabira

"No, no, little one," Kagome warned, plucking Ichiro's plump fingers from the fabric of her hakama. She didn't want to knock him over while she was helping Sango string and take down the laundry. Just as Ichiro was starting to whine Kagome had two little brunettes in front of her grabbing the hands of their little brother. Without any prompting the girls walked him away to the patch of grass they had been playing in.

'Such good children,' Kagome thought. They still fussed and whined every now and again, but it would seem that both were growing into very contentious children. Sango and Miroku were doing a fine job raising them. Little Ichiro was getting so big, too. His hair was much darker than his sisters' now and he looked very much like a small Miroku, aside from the brown eyes. He was already walking, within the past few days. Not on his own, of course, but he could walk quite a ways with some assistance. The three of them were so cute, the most perfect little children anyone could ask for.

Of course, Kagome was only a sort of aunt to them. Since Inuyasha seemed to have no desire for children of his own, Kagome supposed she would have to make the most of having time with her friend's children. She should really give Miroku and Sango a night off soon. She had wanted to babysit overnight for a while, she would just -

"Kagome?" Sango's voice pulled the young Miko from her musings.

"So what are you going to do about the dog?"

"Oh..." Kagome sighed, folding a length of dry cloth over her arm, "I just have to wait until Inuyasha comes back. What else can I do?"

"Well...I wouldn't worry too much. She's disappeared before, hasn't she?"

Kagome nodded slightly. Yes, there were some nights the dog didn't come back at night, and Kagome always worried about her, but then Inuyasha would track Aki down and bring her back the following day. This time was much longer, though, Kagome conveyed to her friend. Aki had been gone four nights, since Inuyasha and Miroku had suddenly left for a job. She knew there weren't any bears or wolves in the woods at that time that might get ahold of her, but why had she been gone so long? What if she was hurt or scared? What if she was hungry? The poor thing had been so spoiled she probably didn't know how to catch squirrels anymore.

Kagome had asked around the village and no one had seen her. Maybe she had a place she liked to go? When Inuyasha went looking he always spent about the same amount of time carrying her back. Kagome had never bothered to ask where Inuyasha kept finding the little shiba inu, so Kagome didn't have a clue where to start. She was so worried, and on top of that she was lonely. As small a house as it was from what she was used to living in, it was so big and empty without Shippo or Inuyasha or the dog to occupy space and kept her company. It was so quiet at night.

She thought this again as the light began to fade and still no one had seen her little orange dog about. There was still a chill in the spring air, and the thought of sleeping alone seemed to make it worse. Slowly she wondered back in the direction of her house, only to pause as she stepped off the main road onto the narrow path that lead up the hill into the woods. To influence her decision, the wind came through then, twirling the whisps of hair that had escaped her low ponytail, and leading her back onto the road. She travelled for a few minutes before coming up to that familiar house and knocking politely on the door.

Kagome explained truthfully how she felt staying in her house alone, and Sango was obliged to have the young Miko stay the night. She appreciated the (adult) company. Kagome helped Sango get the kids fed and tucked into bed that night, while the two stayed up talking for a few more hours. It really had been a long time since she had had one-on-one time with Sango, and she forgot how much she missed it. Without any chores to do or activities to think of for the children, Sango and Kagome talked about the upcoming summer, the way the leaves were turning that bright green color they both loved. The conversation inevitably came back to children, since Kagome had noted a few more women had become pregnant during the cold season. It would seem they had a lot of upcoming births in the autumn. Ranko should be very close to delivering her baby now, and Kagome planned to check up on her the following day. Haru was beginning to show quite a bit now, she was past halfway into the pregnancy now, and she seemed to be just as healthy and happy as could be.

Sango noticed an odd expression on Kagome's face and a pause as her friend continued on about pregnancies and babies. Sango bit her lip, knowing that there was probably something Kagome was not saying about the topic. It would seem they both had secrets at that point. Sango had…suspected something was up with Kagome and Inuyasha by this point in time. The younger of the women had made it clear to her, at least, that she loved children and had mentioned wanting to start a family with Inuyasha. Then, a few months ago, she had stopped talking about that. It seemed very sudden when before she was so enthusiastic about wanting a baby. Sango wondered if…was everything alright between the two of them? From what Kagome had told her before, Inuyasha seemed upbeat about becoming a father, but what if they had been trying and nothing had come of it? After half a year, she supposed it would get her down, too, but she would not give up hope, as Kagome had seemed to.

The mother of three had so many questions, but given the pleasant way the conversation was actually going, she would rather not ruin it. She kept her questions to herself. It technically wasn't her business to know, but she was curious, so she would ask on a later day.

Miroku kept up with Inuyasha in silence as they pushed through the brush that had grown into the road. Not many travelers came along from the south, but he didn't expect the road to be this overgrown by now. Parts of the road were pristine, but thorn bushes grew fast and took over other parts. When Miroku stopped, Inuyasha assumed the monk had gotten snagged on something but when he looked back, a concerned expression crossed the monk's face as he stared off down the road from where they had just been.

"We need to go back to that market," the monk declared, "I forgot to get something." He looked back to the hanyou man just to watch his golden eyes roll in irritation. Inuyasha obviously wanted to get home as quickly as possible and backtracking was not in the plan for that.

"No, I need to get some eye makeup for Sango," he said, defending his case, "she's been asking the last three trips and I've forgotten it until now. She'll have my head if I forget it again." Inuyasha growled, but said nothing as the pair turned back around and started towards the market an hour out of the way. Inuyasha had never realized Sango wore makeup until he heard Sango griping at Miroku after forgetting it the last trip. How observant he was. He never noticed, but at that point he had never seen Sango without the eye coloring, so it just became a part of the whole 'Sango' image to him. Of course she wore reddish eye makeup. Or was it magenta?

Those were the questions asked as Inuyasha stood by and Miroku tried to make a decision. Sango preferred a certain shade after all. There were lifted brows by those few unhurried onlookers as they watched the two men—a monk and a demon—at the vendor selling various eye and lip colorings. Inuyasha quickly became annoyed with the feeling of eyes on his back and stepped away from the vendor to the edge of the village. It was the monk's wife, he could make the decision by himself. Inuyasha had his own wife to worry about.

He pulled a thin piece of wood from his sleeve and started to scrape the edges off of the item. Inuyasha knew Kagome was turning twenty some time in the spring—relatively soon—and he wanted to try his hand at making something for her. She had done something nice for him and made him dumplings for his birthday, so he supposed he would return the favor. Of course, the 'something nice' he could easily return if she wanted, but his cooking was mediocre at best so he could do something else to replace that. He had gotten started on this comb the first day he left with Miroku, and all it really needed now was a coat of lacquer but he decided to smooth out the edges a bit. The comb she normally used had a few missing tines. The tines on this one were further apart but they definitely wouldn't break as easily.

Inuyasha heard his name called once and followed Miroku out of the village after he made his decision.

"Aki!" Kagome called over her husband's shoulder. They had been searching for the little dog since Inuyasha's return, him tracking through the crisscrossing scent pathways through the forest until they landed in a village on the very east edge of Inuyasha's forest. It was past Ranko's village, so despite Kagome having convinced him it was urgent, she stopped in to check in on the pregnant woman. Ranko's sister would be visiting to help with the delivery, which should be in just a few weeks.

Passing through that village, they continued right onto the next, past where Kagome thought the dog might wander, until Inuyasha tracked the dog's scent to one of the huts, and then out into the fields. Inuyasha spotted her, orange and fluffy, near the bottom of a hill. She was on a leash, lead by a young boy, and more well-behaved than Inuyasha had ever seen her on the leash.

"Oh, Aki!" Kagome shouted when she, too, caught sight of the dog. The orange puff of a Shiba lifted her head towards the sound. Her tail started to wag, but then the boy tugged on her leash and they continued down the road. Kagome raised her brow in confusion as she shoved off her husband's back.

"Aki," she said before giving a short whistle.

The dog stalled, looking back towards the Miko. The boy also turned his head then, glancing back at Kagome.

"Uh, hi there," Kagome greeted the boy then.

"You uh, you found our dog. She's been missing a few days, so I'm happy to see you've taken good care of her." Kagome crouched to the boy's level, but noticed his hand tightening on the leash and shooting her a suspicious glare.

"No. This is my dog. Her name is Hanabira."

"Uh...I know you've probably taken care of her, but um..." Kagome pointed back to Inuyasha, "we tracked her from our village, where she got lost, and she is definitely our dog. Right Aki?"

With the last sentence, the dog Yipped in reply, recognizing her name.

"Hanabira," the boy declared sternly, and the dog turned to look back at the boy, starting to wimper in obvious confusion. Suddenly, a clawed hand reached around Kagome and grabbed onto the leash.

"Let's go, Kagome."

"Hey!" The boy cried, digging his heels in and pulling back on the leash against the hanyou with all his might.

"What are you doing! Let go of her!" The boy screeched against the leash.

"What the hell is going on down there?!"

All three turned their heads up to the top of the hill, where a man came running with a garden how in hand.

"Dad! They're going to take Hanabira away!" The boy called up to the man. Inuyasha's grip tightened on the rope leash, but he said nothing nor moved until the man stopped, a mere two meters from him.

"This dog here belongs to Kagome," Inuyasha stated bluntly, tilting his head to indicate the black-haired Miko beside him.

"The hell it is. What makes you think it's your dog?" The man said, glaring down at the hanyou, who only stood two centimeters shorter than the man.

"She went missing, Kagome had me track her scent all the way here. This dog has the exact same scent as hers, so - "

"Nononono. This is my dog. You're confused."

"Kagome found her about four or five months back, when she was just a pup, and I think that's more than the time needed to claim ownership over a dog," Kagome twisted her hands nervously, but remained quiet as she watched her husband speak, remarkably calm for him.

The man ran a hand down his face, taking a deep breath.

"Okay, yeah. The dog went missing about then, and we thought she'd gotten herself eaten by a bear, but she was my dog first. I picked her out specifically for my son, as the best in the litter, so you can't just say she's yours," he turned his gaze to the Miko for that last bit, "just because she wandered over to you. I mean. . You're telling me in five months, you never once checked for a collar?"

"I...I saw the collar but I couldn't find the owner right away so..." Kagome started.

The man raised a brow.

"So you saw a dog with a collar, that somebody obviously put on the dog, yet you claim that it belongs to you? I made that collar myself. The same type I make for all my dogs, ain't none made quite like it in musashi." The collar Inuyasha had first noticed with red banding within the tan strands of rope had only been a topic of discussion within the first days after finding the dog and actively looking for the owner. They had never searched this far out when they were looking for the owner. Never thought the little dog would make it so far from home, so Inuyasha had never bothered. That and he saw how quickly his wife had become attached to the little Shiba, he really couldn't tell her to get rid of the dog.

"Whatever," Inuyasha started, a low growl beginning in his throat, "that dog has been in my village for almost half her life, and lemme tell ya. One of the stupidest dogs I have ever met, but Kagome likes 'er and has been taking care of her all this time. Don't you think that means nothin'?"

"I don't care if she is a stupid pup, she was out of my brother's dog, picked out for my boy. She came back to us this last week and came right up to him, carrying on like she had as a pup. Remembered him. She's my dog. His dog." he said, sternly, unfazed by the growling hanyou. Inuyasha glanced down to where the boy had let go of the leash, now with his arms wrapped around the dog defensively, the dog looking up at the two men, utterly confused by the situation.

"He loved that dog. Broke his heart when she ran off, you can't just take her away from him again, can you? She's part of our family, gets a second chance to be part of our family."

"Look, that still doesn't change the fact that -"

Inuyasha felt fingers wrapped around the hand which held the leash. He looked down to see Kagome unfurling his fingers without looking at him. Her gaze was still directed down to the little boy, his face buried in the confused dog's orange fur.

"What are you doing?" Inuyasha hissed to his wife.

"Let's go."

The man sighed.

"Thank goodness," the man muttered before raising his voice to a normal level again.

"Miko-sama, I am sorry for any confusion. You understand, right?" The man's demeanor had changed completely when Inuyasha's fingers released the rope, standing back to give Kagome the most bewildered expression.

Kagome nodded.

"Well. Inuyasha of the forest, I presume? You two had better head back to the forest before the night chill comes on."

"What? What the - we ain't leavin'! Not without -"

"Inuyasha." Kagome's voice was clipped and direct. He looked up to Kagome as she let out a sigh with a slight smile. A fake smile.

"Let's go home, okay?"

"But -"

"Inuyasha."

Inuyasha didn't say a word after that, not even as Kagome climbed onto his back and he picked up speed before nightfall. When he let her down outside of their house, he was slow to follow her inside. Only when her voice reached his ears did he huff and push through the entry.

"What do you want for dinner?"

"Why the hell'd you do that?"

Kagome sighed.

"Straight rice and vegetables it is," she muttered in return. He followed her steps to the counter, shaking his head.

"You loved that dog. Why the hell'd you just…let it go?"

"It…It wasn't my dog," Kagome said the rice pot as she reached for it. She stood on her toes to get the big spoon, remembering, as she fumbled to reach it, that Inuyasha had put it away the last time. A hand was on her shoulder then, and tan fingers wrapped around the spoon to take it off the hook. Kagome frowned up at her husband as he pushed the spoon into her grasp.

"The hell it wasn't, Kagome. You had that dog over half her life, so what if she remembered those people. It was your dog."

"Inuyasha," she said, with a clipped chuckle, "you don't even like dogs."

"Ah, for fuck's sake—"

"When she followed me home, we knew she had an owner, but we never did spend very much time looking for them. I was so stupid, she followed me home from checking in on Ranko, in that direction at least, I never even bothered to check beyond this village. When we got to Aki's old village today, and I met those people…I felt like I stole her. I stole her from those people, from that little boy."

"What the fuck, Kagome. Don't try to twist this."

"I'm not. I'm just saying, she'll probably be happier there. I just, I don't know."

"Oh please," Inuyasha muttered, running a hand through the front of his hair, "you spoiled that damn dog. What could be better than that?"

Kagome twisted her sleeves.

"Well...we're always too busy to play with her. I've only gotten to play fetch with her a few times." The first game of fetch had been cut short when Inuyasha became upset when he had reflexively chased after the stick more than once.

"You have your duties protecting the forest, and going out with Miroku and I have mine as a Miko. Aki...Hanabira...will do best with a little boy to chase after and play with. Sure, sometimes I babysit children, but it isn't the same as having regular playtime with a little kid. A cute dog like that belongs with...a family..."

Inuyasha frowned deeply as a cold spot began to form on the back of his neck. So...that's... Why did it always come back to this? Inuyasha became quiet then, watching as his wife left him to change her clothes and start preparing dinner. He wanted to tell her that they were a family. However small.

When she sat down again for dinner, Inuyasha met her eyes again.

"I was kinda starting to like that stupid dog, you know."

"Inuyasha..."

"Shippo got along with her too."

Kagome sighed.

"I know. But...Shippo is...well on his way to becoming a top-notch fox demon. He even said that he wanted to make his own little burrow in the forest. I just... I made the wrong choice, didn't I?" Kagome stared down into her bowl blinking to avoid tearing up about the situation. Aki - Hanabira - had a home that...just wasn't shared with her anymore. Her. Inuyasha... Shippo. God, she never even thought about Shippo.

"Maybe," Inuyasha said. Kagome lifted her head to look at her husband, stuffing his mouth with rice, eyes closed. He swallowed and spoke again.

"Maybe it was the wrong choice, but it's done and over with now. Shouldn't worry too much about it...'sides. I never really did like dogs. Too needy. Cats though. Cats pretty much take care of 'emselves."

Kagome raised a brow.

"What?"

"There's bound to be a pregnant cat or two in the village. Sure someone'll let us have a kitten. Legitimately. Be ours and no one else's."

Kagome twisted her face in confusion, looking at her dear husband as if he had sprouted another head.

"What? I know you like cats."

Kagome shook her head again, brow knit.

"Inuyasha wha...wha?"

He shrugged.

"Too soon?" He asked, almost playful, though he was actually hesitant, watching how his wife might react.

Kagome rolled her eyes.

"Yes. Too soon." Kagome sighed, but couldn't help the small smile that tugged on the edges of her lips.

"I'm gonna miss that dog."

"Yeah, well." Inuyasha stuffed his mouth with more vegetables.

...

Before anyone hates me, this basically happened to me over the summer. When we moved into our house, Neighbourly already lived in the back yard. She was a real sweetheart, and for eight years we fed her and gave her a box to sleep in in the winter, but we couldn't take her in because he didn't get along with our other cats. We couldn't give her all the love and attention she deserved. Then she got picked up by our shelter. We visited her there, but within the week she found a new home, my mom actually met the couple and their little girl as they were adopting her and we knew she would have a good home with all the love and warmth she deserved.

Well. Aki was never going to be permanent to this story, but instead of killing hhat sweet little dog, because let's face it, I am a softie. When this happened to tail I just decided to come back around to the collar I mentioned with her introduction. Also...life happens. I am not going to promise swift updates because life has given me some twists you may know about if you follow my tumblr.

Hanabira means petals or something I was naming at random.