Title: A Christmas to Remember
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha and Co.
Summary: "Tell me Higurashi, did you and the mythological Lord have tea together?" Her teacher asked sarcastically. "No professor, The Lord of the Western lands and I never had tea together, although we did spend Christmas together." was her simple reply. S/K
A/N: Annnnd it's nearly done! One more chapter to go and then I'll be off work and ready to update the story.
He had initially been shocked when Shinji had spoken about a human defending his honor. He had simply thought that the Inu had been bored and altered facts with fiction. Yet then the phone call had come. He had heard her voice—he had heard her vulnerability. Just like that, memories that had taken place five hundred years ago surfaced.
Memories of a winter that he would not forget—no matter how hard he tried. Had that been her intention? Even now, he knew she had not expected the familiarity to occur. Who knew in such a short time frame he would have learned so much? Had he known the impact that this girl would have on him, would he have prevented and avoided the events leading up to that winter? He supposed he would never know. However, in the back of his head he knew that he would not have changed a thing. Wanting to change events would imply that he felt he had not been in control of his surroundings.
That was something that even now, Sesshoumaru would never admit.
Her conversation in the cabin had taught him of her values and things that she held dear. Her actions around the castle showed him that she held a love for his ward that rivaled his own. It was also hard to miss her innocence constantly flaring in any task that she pursued. Then there was her protectiveness, which was impossible to overlook whenever she was around her adoptive son and his ward. Indeed, he had learned much about the Miko during the winter so long ago.
Perhaps that was why he had been so annoyed with her silence in regards to the actions of the wolf. After witnessing the recent events between the two, he thought perhaps he was losing his mind when his own behavior mirrored that of what appeared be jealousy. Yet, after initially driving her to his residence, he realized what had truly caused his irritation. Her ignorance, as well as her disregard to what was right in front of her.
The wolf had not wasted any time continuing to pursue the miko. Sesshoumaru had not expected anything less. It had been her reaction, or lack thereof that had irritated him. Any human or youkai alike could see that the feelings were not mutual. Hundreds of years ago, he had heard stories of the miko denying the wolfs advances while they were on their quest. In fact, many other lords from the council had heard such tales.
Yet, suddenly she was meek as a mouse. What had happened to the courageous and spirited woman that legends now spoke of? Frustration and irritation radiated off him. Had he not known how delicate the human miko was, he would have throttled her senseless. Then had come her shyness and uncertainty while conversing with him. She had pretended to be unaware of her behavior towards the wolf when both of them knew what he spoke of.
Letting out a low growl, he released a silent breath.
She was pretending to be timid, meek and unsure of herself. What had happened to the miko he had remembered? Had his memories altered as time went on? Had she not truly been as extraordinary as he remembered? Shaking his head, he knew that was not what had occurred. His memories of her had been correct. So why had such a change occurred in her personality?
He had not lied when he told her that she needed a mate whom understood the importance of dedication, patience and potential. The Feudal Era had proven that chaos, and uncertainty did not agree with her. Had she been put in an environment where she was shown her potential and importance, he had no doubt she would thrive—emotionally and physically. Not only that, with patience and hard work, her power could easily rival that of Youkai lords—not him of course, but easily the others.
She should have had proper training.
She should have had a dedicated and patience alpha that valued her potential.
She should have been given the opportunity to bloom into the powerful Miko and creature that she truly was.
Instead, she had followed an alpha that held her in disregard and only provided a chaotic and disorganized pack. She had not been given time to train or grow—she had been deprived of any possibilities to thrive. Her only option left had been survival.
Yet, all of that still did not explain her current actions. Why did her disappearance not provide her with an opportunity to grow? He was sure he understood why she had not pursued a mate. While her life had been chaotic, he knew her well enough to know that a human was not what she needed in a partner. Her behavior and power required a youkai mate—that he was sure of.
It was odd to think of such a topic again. He had vaguely remembered letting these thoughts enter his mind after Rin had begged him to search for the Miko. While she was human, she held more personality traits of a youkai than a human did. Naturally, as time passed he had erased such thoughts from his mind. Back then, there was no point in contemplating about a Miko that had vanished.
Yet, here he was again. While there was no romantic feelings between them, he had noticed the natural attraction that had occurred. Back then, he would not dare thought such a thing but after five hundred years, he decided that was indeed the correct label. Back then, his conquest for power had made him oblivious to many things—she had been one of them.
Back then, her values and personality had been acceptable to him. He did not detest her as he had initially expected. It was not until the cabin that his interest had been piqued about whom she truly was. Then came the events in his home, it was then that he became peculiarly conscious of the woman that had drawn his attention and earned his respect. Slowly he began to take note of things such as her appearance and behavior. He had examined and watched her in interest and curiosity.
It was not until she was gone that he had realized that he had been assessing and determining her worth. In fact, it had not been until he saw her laying in the hospital bed that he realized what he had been subconsciously doing so long ago. Whether it had been him or his beast, it had quickly become clear to him that he had been contemplating her worth in regards to being his mate.
That realization had taken five hundred years to occur. It had taken his beast purring in relief and happiness when they had both realized it was truly the miko from the past. At first, he had been stunned at such a reaction. Yet, as he escorted her from the hospital, he had realized it was not such an absurd thought. Even with that, simply considering the miko did not mean that he would mate her. She had simply become a viable candidate.
Had.
She had become a viable candidate.
While that in itself spoke volumes, it did not mean that he would court her. He had toyed at the thought of such a thing but then she had showed him who she was now. She was not the miko he remembered. If it was possible, she had somehow become the opposite of his memory of her. She had lost her fight and determination.
Why such a thing had occurred was irrelevant to him. He was not going to entertain the thought of courting someone whom had become everything he knew she was not.
She was broken.
What good was a star that had lost its light?
No, for now, he would not entertain such a thought. For now, he would be patient and keep an eye on the miko. He would ensure that her environment was one that would give her the opportunity to thrive.
Perhaps then, her fight would come back.
Perhaps then, her light would surface once more.
A/N: Sorry if the story is going slow for anyone. I keep trying to think of the situation realistically and I would imagine that Kagome would indeed lose her spark. Imagine going from such a dangerous and adrenaline environment with a well known purpose and then going to one where everything was easy and held no purpose? Feel free to review if you disagree or think she would have done something else. I'm always to interested in hearing what others believe she would have done if she had been trapped in the future after all her adventures in the past.