Blanket Disclaimer: The writer does not own any characters created by Rumiko Takahashi but like everyone else wishes she did. All original characters or concepts are the author's Inuma Asahi De's (with the exception of historical figures).
Chapter Twenty-Two:
Kagome's Nature
Kagome stood on the ship Shikuro's helm deck, Sango standing behind her leaning on the wheel. They were already docked in the amazing Port that was Havana, the Capital of the vast Island of Cuba. From her spot on the ship she could make out an unfathomable amount of people milling around the dock. Unlike Trinidad it seemed that Havana was not a place of illegal trade or at least not readily so. From her vantage point on the ship she could make out the amazing differences that suggested such a thing.
Firstly, she saw none of the immoral women she had seen back on the Port of Spain. In fact, the only women she did see were respectfully on the arms of gentlemen or selling wares from stalls that were located periodically around various buildings. These women appeared to be good and decent and interestingly dressed. Unlike the women of the Port of Spain, who wore more European clothing, these women wore beautiful, colorful, Spaniard clothes with low drop waist and ruffles that waved along the bottom. It seemed the most popular color was a rich orange but many yellows and blues floated on the dock as well, on the arms of demurely dressed men.
Secondly, she could see no apparent exchanges of merchandise from hand to hand. Instead, she saw only the unloading of goods, the bartering of prices of seemingly innocent goods between men who held cigars in their teeth. She saw sugar canes and tobacco, some spices from the looks of the barrels and a few other food products, but nothing as interesting as poppy seeds.
Blinking her eyes rapidly she turned away from the strange sights on the dock and chose to look at the strange sights on the ship. Sitting at a makeshift desk of wooden barrels was Miroku with Shippo sitting beside him acting as his assistant as he measured and weighed the gold in front of all the men. There were parchments spread about in front of him that he used to take notes on and a scale sitting on his right a series of weights sat on one of its platforms and three varying stacks of gold on the opposite. Beside the balance scale sat young Shippo who, at Miroku's signal, was responsible for adding or subtracting weights from the scales left platform.
The men of the ship were mulling around a few feet away from the makeshift desk mirroring the people of the docks even though their mulling and loitering was for wholly different purposes. Every once in a while they would pause in step looking over at the Quartermaster as if waiting for him to speak and announce how many gold pieces and silver pieces each individual was set to receive today. Only when Miroku remained silent however, his eyes looking at calculations intently, they would begrudgingly start moving again.
Still, out of the corner of every man's eye they all watched as they paced, almost foaming at the mouth as Miroku motioned for Shippo to remove a weight. The small fox complied, changing the weight out with a different one as Miroku changed out the gold pieces to silver pieces not wanting the boy to touch the money but fine with the fact the boy was handling the valuable weights. Miroku glanced at the weights, their numbers all turned in his direction so he could view them. He grunted and licked the end of the quill that was glued to his hand before dipping it in the ink and writing out a number. He pulled his hand back and studied the parchment for several long seconds before nodding to himself and removing three of the silver pieces on the platform.
Some of the men around him started to whisper their voices eerily quiet as they debated amongst themselves about the new amount of silver on the platform. Kagome strained her ears, trying to hear some of the whispers floating around the crew but the men were nowhere near loud enough for her to hear what they were saying. She had a feeling they were doing it on purpose none of them wanting to really be heard for fear of the ramifications.
"Alright men," Miroku called out finally, all the men leaning towards him waiting for what he was about to say. Utterly interested Kagome too leaned forward anxiously waiting for whatever it was Miroku was about to announce. The man in question looked at the parchment he had been calculating on and smiled—appearing pleased with what he was about to announce to the crew. "It seems," He began, looking at all the men with a smirk on his face. "That all A.B.S. will receive ten gold coins and five silver pieces each in accordance to their one share rule."
The ship abruptly started to cheer causing Kagome to jump from her spot on the helms deck as the men celebrated this information happily, praising both their Captain and Quartermaster for the apparently ample earnings. Behind Kagome, Sango smiled watching the young girl as she looked on at the men astonished by their outburst. Walking towards Kagome Sango reached out tapping Kagome's shoulder to grab her attention. Kagome jumped slightly in response and quickly turned her eyes questioning but before a word of question could leave her lips Sango spoke.
"It's a good wage," Sango said before Kagome could speak, the two of them walking over to stand next to the stairs, leaning against the rail so they could look out at the quarter deck where Miroku was working.
"Is it?" Kagome asked in reply, her eyes focused on the more experienced girl.
Sango nodded sharply resting her chin on her upturned palm, her elbow resting on the edge of the rail as she bent over comfortably. "Sure is, the navy only gives men of that station one Pound five shillings at best." The girl smirked before adding. "They're getting the equivalent of twenty pounds and a few shilling I'd venture to guess."
"Twenty Pounds?" Kagome said surprised. She knew that twenty pounds was an impressive salary. In fact her father only earned three hundred pounds a year and these low class men were earning over twenty in a matter of months. "Amazing."
"I know, my father only made about four hundred pounds a year." Sango said as she looked down at her husband thoughtfully. "And he was a high ranking official under the King." The girl gave a dry smile at the thought. "He would kill himself if he knew that these men make more for working far less."
Kagome watched Sango silently as the woman slowly drifted off her eyes becoming distant as she thought on the past. Kagome watched her for several seconds feeling the wave of sadness that was affecting Sango start to affect herself. "I wish she would talk to me about it." She thought to herself her heart reaching out to the older woman who had experienced so much. "I just want to help." Shaking her head, knowing it would come with time, she began to let her own mind drift forcing herself to pull her eyes away from Sango in favor of looking at the men below. "This life—," She thought to herself as she looked out at those men on the deck who were celebrating with ale and grog. "It's not that bad," She closed her eyes and giggled as some of the men began to sing in a language she did not know. "In fact it's really entertaining." Slowly, Kagome opened her eyes looking at the men below as a feeling of envy entered her. "It's even a little appealing." She sighed heavily. "These men have freedom, they can drink when they want, eat when they want, they get paid a lot for their work far more than shore folk." She bit her lip. "Miroku even said they elect their Captain and Quartermaster—they're pirates and they have democracy," She narrowed her eyes trying to remember if that was the word. "This life," Kagome thought to herself shoving the vocabulary aside. "It's really not sounding so bad."
"Samuel!" Miroku yelled out then as he looked about the ship, breaking both Kagome and Sango from their separate thoughts. A man of no more than fifteen walked away from the crowd and over to the Quartermaster hurriedly.
Kagome watched him from a distance her eyes trained on him as Miroku counted out a series of gold and silver coins. The young man, Samuel, watched carefully his eyes never leaving Miroku's hands as the Quartermaster counted out the money placing it on the scale so as to check that each coin was in fact solid. Glancing around, Kagome noticed that all the men of the ship were fixated on Miroku's counting, watching with utter interest as he stacked the money on the scale, watching the scale bob up and down until it stopped sitting in a straight even line.
Satisfied that the money equaled the correct weight and amount Miroku nodded and grabbed the money, pushing it in the direction of Samuel who placed the money in a small purse before tying it at his side. Miroku motioned towards Shippo who nodded and pushed a list in front of the boy, telling him softly to place his initials next to his name as Miroku watched sharply for any mistakes. Samuel complied and then shook Miroku's hand before leaving the ship completely.
"Anthony!" Miroku called out without further comment and this time an older looking man jumped down from his spot on a barrel and made his way over to Miroku and his makeshift desk, the process repeating itself easily.
"Why is Shippo helping?" Kagome inquired as she watched the man named Anthony slowly collect his share and signed his name when the small Cabin Boy presented the paper and quill.
Sango shrugged. "Miroku said its part of his education."
"His education?" Kagome narrowed her eyebrows. She wasn't sure what kind of education Shippo was receiving if his job was to add weights to scales and to make men sign papers, it seemed very menial.
"Yeah, Miroku started off the same way," Sango told her as she watched her husband. "Learning how to use the scale." She pointed down at the small instrument. "You learn the scale, you learn to count and you learn how to determine the worth of gold. It's important if you want to get a high rank on a pirate's vessel." She added thoughtfully, "I guess the Captain's decided to groom him."
Kagome nodded that she understood and turned to look down at the small red headed boy. "He is a good boy, smart too."
Sango nodded in agreement. Since the boy had come onto the ship the two girls had been responsible for his education or at least his academic education. They had started by teaching him the English alphabet, an endeavor that really had only taken two nights. After he had mastered the alphabet they had moved on to simple words and learning the art of sounding out syllables. So far, it had only been a week and already the boy was picking up the art of reading rather quickly, so much so that Kagome estimated that the boy would be able to read a few sentences and perhaps a children's book in only a few more weeks.
"I wonder if Inuyasha would let me buy him a book." She thought to herself as she watched the young Shippo. "If he's interested in the boy's education then he probably would."
Pushing the thoughts of Shippo's education aside, Kagome turned her thoughts onto her own education and her own lessons—lessons on the hierarchy of the pirates ship. "So," Kagome started conversationally. "These are the A.B.S.?"
"Yes," Sango said with a nod. "Really that's just a fancy way of saying they have no title."
Kagome tapped a finger to her chin in thought. "So they're just workers?"
"Deck hands if you will," Sango shrugged lightly as she glanced over all the men. "But literally A.B.S. stands for Able Bodied Sailor. They're anyone who does any sort of job from swab and powder monkey to rigger."
"Hm," Kagome touched her lips, thinking of what duties she had seen men like Samuel and Anthony perform. "So they clean," She began to list off as she glanced above her head in thought. "And work in the rigging and row," She pursed her lips before snapping her fingers and looking at Sango in triumph. "And shot people?"
The older woman have her an amused smile but nodded. "That's about it," She confirmed before turning to look back over the crowd. "Sometimes they unload the ship or load the supplies." She added. "They even clean the underbelly when she needs it."
"Who's next," Kagome pressed becoming interested in the subject. "In the hierarchy?"
Sango smiled at her terminology but didn't comment as she stood to her full height and stretched. "Next would be all the mates. We have thirty something—one less since the storm," Sango winced and shook her head, thinking of the poor man who had once manned the helm. Shrugging it off she held up three fingers pointing to her first finger as she spoke. "They serve under the Master Carpenter Totosai," She put a finger down. "The Master Rigger Myoga who you know," She put another finger down leaving only one "And the Master Gunner Murphy." With all her fingers now tucked into a fist Sango let her hand fall to her side.
"How much do they get? I mean," Kagome thought for a moment gathering her thoughts. "How many shares?"
"One and a half." Sango told her as she looked down at the deck again. "So they'll get fifteen gold, seven silver and a pence about depends on the weight." She sighed rubbing her head as she tried to explain. "Miroku can calculate it with the scales," She finally settled on with a wave of her hand. "It's his job."
Kagome smiled laughing lightly at her friend before turning back to look at the men below her, Miroku was currently handing a share to a man who looked like a demon, his ears pointed and his hair an odd blue color—a demon. "I never thought to see a demon on a pirate vessel." Kagome thought to herself as she leaned forward on the railing. "Mama always told me that demons were from a higher class, the rulers of the world—kings and queens, dukes and earls—," She trailed off watching as the blue haired man tucked his share away and started towards the plank. "Yet here's another demon acting way below his social standing. Just like the Captain and Hiten and Manten." She frowned glancing over the crowd. "And Myoga," She added before her eyes landed on the tiny boy helping Miroku. "And Shippo." Kagome chewed the inside of her cheek. "It's like everything I ever was told was a lie." She reasoned in her head. "This world, it's nothing like they made me to believe." For a moment she felt inconsolably depressed, depressed that she had been lied to for so long but, there was nothing to be done for it now, it was all very much far behind her. She was no longer the person she had been who listened to everything her mother said (albeit not that well), she was now herself in an different life. "A better life." She grumbled deciding to ignore the twinge of familial betrayal in her heart she turned back to Sango to continue learning. "And after the mates who's next?"
"The three masters: Myoga, Totosai, and Murphy." Sango said as she pursued her lips as if she had just tasted something sour. "They all receive a full two shares."
"Two shares?" Kagome commented with wide eyes. "So they'll get twenty-one pieces of gold."
Sango nodded. "Makes you almost sick doesn't it?"
Kagome also nodded in her agreement. "Who's left after that?"
"The Captain and Quartermaster." Sango supplied just as the Captain walked out on the deck his footsteps heavy as he came to stand out in the sunlight.
Miroku, Shippo and Sango didn't even budge at the Captain's arrival, neither did the rest of the men on the deck who were fixated on the counting of the ships gold Kagome however, found herself fixated on the man standing below her.
She watched, her eyes trained on the tall man as his hair shined reflecting the light of the sun with its silver strands. It was a hauntingly beautiful sight to take in: the bright sunlight of Havana's sky reflecting off the surreal tresses of a demon. The sight of his ears twitching upon his head made her gulp. There was something about the way they moved, the way they swiveled about his head, turning this way and that, taking in all the sounds around him quickly, the mere sight made Kagome squirm unable to fathom the cuteness of the act.
Her eyes were drawn away from his ears when he titled his head upwards and turned slightly to the side, obscuring them from her view. She watched entranced as he turned her way his eyes closed but his nose scrunching up several times as he sniffed the air. Instantly, his eyes snapped opened the bright golden irises flashing in the sunlight briefly as his pupils grew instantly smaller, adjusting to the bright light in a matter of mere seconds and then, he was looking at her.
The two stared at each other for a moment, both taking in the features of the other as if they hadn't seen each other in years, when in fact they had spoken just this morning. For several minutes they stood like that, watching the other as if they were both internally debating with themselves about what to do. Kagome wondered if she should wave or perhaps turn away. Maybe she should simply smile or would a smile be too little or would it be too much. Maybe she should just nod her head, a simplistic gesture that would not indicate how she was feeling on the inside or perhaps it was so simplistic that he would take offense?
In the end, however, Kagome never did have time to react, instead Captain Inuyasha reacted first by smirking at her and then, much to her surprise, he gave her a wink before turning away from her, his eyes traveling to his Quartermaster.
"What the hell does that mean?" Kagome asked herself as the image of the Captain winking at her replayed over and over again in her head. Kagome bit her lip, glad Inuyasha wasn't looking at her anymore because if he had been he would have seen the look of complete and utter bewilderment on her every feature. After all, a wink was a rather odd gesture, it could mean almost anything good or bad, nice or mean, happy or sarcastic. "Who in the world winks like that?" She grumbled, irritated by her own uncertainty.
"What was that Kagome?"
Kagome felt the color drain from her face as she realized she had said her last thought out loud. Turning to Sango who was giving her a rather inquisitive look she smiled flushed to her hair line. "Oh I was—um," She laughed nervously as she struggled for some lie, any lie she could use at the moment. "Well—"
"Yes," Sango pressed looking slightly annoyed or perhaps just concerned.
"How many shares do the Captain and Miroku get?" Kagome said in a rush, grateful that something had come to her in time.
Sango looked at Kagome out of the corner of her eye her expression one of disbelief. Kagome gulped, perhaps Sango didn't believe that something else was in fact not going on but whether the woman did or not, she went ahead and answered. "Four."
Kagome felt her jaw hit the ground the shock of the answer erasing her earlier thoughts, "Fo—four?"
"Mm Hm," Sango nodded and looked back down at the Captain and Miroku. "You got it, fourty-four gold coins a piece."
"Unbelievable." Kagome barely managed to say, "That's all the poppy seed money."
"I know," Sango smiled at Kagome's complete disbelief. "We got a lot for the tobacco and the navy clothes too."
"Amazing," Kagome breathed as she looked down at the two men, astounded. "Who knew they made so much money?"
"Bet you didn't realize you were moving on up in the world, did yeah?" Sango winked, a wink that Kagome understood to be slightly dirty. "Being a Pirate's bitch does have its perks."
"Wh—Sango—wh-what?" Kagome stuttered, trying to reply to the other girl.
Sango merely grinned before pushing herself off of the rail and walking towards the staircase. "Come on," She said as she started down the stairs, her back turned to the other girl. "We have to get dressed for tonight."
Kagome narrowed her eyebrows and looked down at her current state of dress. As had become her norm, she was outfitted in the clothes of a sailing man, a decent jacket and a pair of soft cotton pants, and of course the boots the Captain had obtained for her. "But—what are we going to change into?" She called after the retreating girl.
Sango turned and looked at her with a finger to her lips, silencing the girl as she mysteriously turned her eyes to the Captain and Miroku who were both too distracted with their work to notice the women. Kagome narrowed her eyes at the silent signal, wondering why the girl would want to hide the fact that they were changing from the two men. Sango smiled at Kagome's confusion and motioned for the younger girl to come closer to her. Kagome did, turning her head so Sango had access to her ear.
The older woman leaned closer to her as well before whispering, "Its times like this when we can be who we really are."
Kagome pulled away before whispering quietly into Sango's own ear. "Who we really are?"
Sango nodded pulling Kagome as close as possible, her eyes darting to the men to see if they had noticed, she really wanted to surprise Miroku. Luckily, the two appeared to be in their own little world, much to Sango's apparent satisfaction as she turned back to Kagome. "Tonight, Kagome," she said with a gleam in her eyes. "We are women."
"But aren't we supposed to dress as men to be safe." Kagome reasoned, her own sense of self preservation coming into play. "Inu—the Captain won't allow it." She quickly recovered.
If Sango noticed she didn't let on. "He doesn't care," She said as she scrunched up her face and waved Kagome off with her hand. "I've dressed like a woman at Havana before, didn't have any trouble at all. Unlike the Port of Spain, this is a safe port. You see the women out there," Sango pointed to the proper looking women who were walking on the arms of various men and the women in the stalls who appeared to be running respectable businesses. "Havana is pretty safe," Sango giggled nervously as she added. "Comparatively speaking."
"What do you mean compara—," Kagome tried to question but didn't have time to finish since Sango had already begun to drag her down the stairs and towards her and Miroku's room.
-break-
"'hat was a 'ood stowy." The sleepy voice of Shippo echoed in the air of the Captain's cabin as he yawned, "But I 'hink it's silly he was justa 'ormal cat." He rubbed his eyes snuggling into the soft sheets as Kagome brought them up higher around him, tucking him in comfortably.
"A normal cat?" She asked as she petted his head, coaxing him to sleep.
"Yeah," He mumbled, his eyes appearing heavy from the soothing rhythmic motion of her hand. "It shoulda been a 'emon cat."
Kagome smiled gently her face growing soft, "A demon cat?"
"Yeah," His voice grew fainter. "He acts like a 'emon cat, he can ta'k. 'Ormal cats don't ta'k."
"You're very right." Kagome appeased as she continued to rub his head watching his eyelids becoming heavier and heavier with each stroke. "We'll have to make him a demon cat next time."
Shippo yawned, nuzzling into her hand, a soft growl coming from his throat—a language Kagome couldn't understand. "Can he habe," Another yawn broke up his sentence. "Two tails?"
"Two tails?" She chuckled as she bent and kissed his head. "Sure next time we'll make Puss and Boots a cat with two tails."
"A 'emon—," Shippo reminded as his eyes closed, opening only briefly as he tried to stay awake.
"Yes, a demon cat with two tails." She smiled as she spoke watching as his eyes finally closed for good, not to open again until the sun awoke him the next morning.
"Goodnight Shippo," Kagome said from her spot at the side of her bed, sitting on its edge, Shippo tucked in fast asleep within the warm sheets.
Seeing as the boy was only six years old (as he had informed them recently) they had decided it was best for him to stay on the ship and get some much needed rest for his ever growing body. Shippo had readily agreed to the arrangement seeing that after so many years of serving Hiten and Manten in various bars and brothels, he really had no desire to go out on the vast port and encounter its night life. So, with Myoga on the ship to both watch the vessel and keep an eye on the demon child (a mission that was not new to him), it had been decided that Shippo would stay behind having already been feed from the ships vast stores and told a bed time story from Kagome herself.
So now he laid in Kagome's bed sound asleep nice and warm and happy—safe and sound. Kagome smiled at the sight, delighting in the young boy's now safe innocence, away from the horrid brothers of the ship The Thunder. Said boy shifted in his sleep, letting out a small whine, a gentle breathy sound that made Kagome's heart stop in her chest as images of another child who whined in his sleep came to her. Carefully, she reached out a hand and touched the fine baby hair on Shippo's small head, moving it aside so she could see his cute sleeping features. A soft smile formed on her lips as she recalled that other child's sleeping face and that other child's black hair that had also covered his eyes whilst he slept.
"Souta." The named echoed in her head and she felt her heart clench ever so slightly in her chest. "Mama, Papa," She wondered internally. "What are you doing right now?"
Her eyes turned to the closed window by Shippo's head and she looked out at the dying Caribbean light, her mind drifting back to the place she had called home for the better part of her seventeen years of life. A dull ache started in her chest and she found herself missing things she had never thought to miss before. She missed her father, she missed her mother—she missed tea time with Eri, Ayame and Yuka, she missed watching the ships come in as she sat on a barrel at the docks, she missed her brother and their antics when they used to play. She missed her whole life and yet—
Kagome looked out across the beautiful sea, taking in the sight of the Caribbean's dark water's glistening as the sun sank lower, lighting up just the bottom of the sky in an orangish rose colored hue. The sight of a small fish jumping out of the water made her feel warm inside and she blinked several times as small tears of happiness touched her cheeks. "For all those things I miss," She told the darkening twilight air. "There are many things I don't."
She didn't miss Naraku, she didn't miss her clothes, she didn't miss the laws that her gender were governed by. This new world showed her that she could be herself, that she could love the sea honestly but that didn't change the fact that she did in fact miss her family. "Still," Kagome whispered into the dark as she thought of all those people she now missed came into her heart. "Did they know me?" She questioned the sea. "Did my mother, my father, my brother, my friends—did any of them know me?"
Looking back on them now, Kagome was sure the answer was no. They had known she was different, they had known she liked the sea, they had known she was not one for rules or society or propriety but had they known the girl underneath that initial act of rebellion?
Feeling oddly sad Kagome looked away from the sea outside and down at the sleeping face of the young Shippo. "No." She said into the fading light. "None of them knew me, they only saw the surface." Looking away from Shippo she turned to look at the room that had become her home in only a matter of a few weeks.
She took in the sight of the blood red curtains, the carpet, sheets and bed all matching, she took in the sight of the desk and its plush chair, the weapons, the 'trophies,' she took in the sight of everything and then she closed her eyes. And with her eyes closed she thought of everything—she thought of Miroku who treated her like a human being with feelings and opinions instead of a brainless porcelain doll, she thought of Sango who listened to her, who shared with her, who bonded with her, who was the same as her, and then her thoughts turned to the Captain, the image of his face forming vividly in her mind.
Unconsciously, her hand raised and touched the gemstone that now rested around her neck, a permanent fixture of her person even if she didn't know why. "Inuyasha." She whispered the name into the dark as images of him as he had been at Port Royal filled her, her eyes closing as they delighted her. The man who had smiled and listened, the man who had danced with her, kissed her hand. He had been so nice, so kind, he had seen her, really seen her and yet—that man wasn't the real Captain Inuyasha.
Her eyes flew opened at that thought and her hand fell from the jewel thinking instead of the man she had heard of in bedtime stories; the rapist, the murderer, the evil Captain that could kill and desecrate, the man who had once brought fear to her heart as she heard of his legacy in childhood stories. Kagome shook herself bringing her fingers to her forehead to soothe an impending headache, that wasn't the real man either.
"He's a better man than that." She repeated the reassuring words as she saw the eighteen year old man knelling in the dirt, calculating his age in the dusty back alleyway. "He's young." She whispered as she saw him in her mind, turning to look up at her from his place on the ground, the childish smile on his face.
She closed her eyes once again, the image of the Captain projected on her eyelids as that gentle side was replayed over and over again for her to see. She saw him as he talked of Miroku, "Miroku was my cabin boy but—they treat that boy like a slave," the way he paused then, his face covered by massive bangs, she saw all of it like a play within her mind, "I treated Miroku like my own—like a son."
The image of the Captain shifting then replaced by another version of him she had seen. There he was, holding the violin to his shoulder, tucking it underneath his strong chin as his brows knitted with concentration, his body moving in tandem to a beat all his own—a song all his own. A sad and depressing song that filled her with grief over something she knew nothing about. And then, his face, as he turned silently to her, "Flowers?" His voice hung in the air as she took in the sight of his closed eyed facade, "Is that your smell?"
His whole body had looked sad then, an air of sorrow hanging around him like a shroud for death and mourning. "A hardened man," She breathed into the night air that image at the forefront of her mind. "Can't look like that." It was true, those expressions, that child like look, the way he talked of Miroku, the way he played the violin his whole body a symphony of sadness, the way he looked at her, even the wink from this afternoon, none of those actions, none of his words had been fake and if they were—then she was naïve.
Closing her eyes tightly, halting any new sights from leaking into her mind, she tried to imagine him as he was in his legend, a killer, a rapist, a murder. She tried to find any example of him in real life that supported the man in the legends. The first day she had seen him dressed as a pirate came to mind and quickly faded. He had been acting in her best interest, protecting her from an enemy that lurked very close in the shadows of the ship doing what he knew would protect her even if she didn't like it, she understood that much.
"Still didn't need to threaten me though." She muttered to herself as she remembered the way he had grabbed her, the punishment he had promised if she didn't obey. "Well—maybe I should have listened to him, I was being—," She couldn't bring herself to finish her thought instead turning to other circumstances where a darker part of the Captain had been revealed.
She turned to the Port of Spain, the two men he had attacked, even then it had been for her, for her safety. Everything he did was done to protect her; marking her, punching a man in the face, pushing a drunk aside, buying her shoes so she wouldn't fall, yelling at her because she had jumped in front of a blood thirsty demon to save a man (even if she thought she was in the right she knew—it had all been done to protect her).
It seemed that the Captain was more good than bad, his legend was just that, a legend. The real man was far more complex, he was educated, he was schooled, he was wise, he was crafty, he was witty, he was a natural linguist, he was a violinist. And he was arrogant and pigheaded and brash and he had a quick temper—and—and—he had read Shakespeare.
"Parting is such sweet sorrow."
A smile broke on her face as the line echoed in her head. He had read Shakespeare—he wouldn't know the line or understand her joke if he hadn't. In that moment, she thought she could see him, really see him, the person hidden so far below the surface that many thought he did not exist but she knew—she knew he was there a hidden man with an unknown past and an uncertain intellect.
"Where did you read Shakespeare?" She questioned the sea air that was wrapped around her, a blanket within the impending darkness of the Captain's Cabin. "Why did you learn?" She shook her head and exhaled harshly as she looked around this room, taking in the charts and maps, wondering where he kept the books, where he had hidden Shakespeare. "Why do you hide it?" She asked the absent man. "Who are you?" Her words were a blunt question that fueled her curiosity. "Who is Inuyasha—," She froze, her tongue unmoving as she blinked. "What's his last name?"
The startling revelation brought her completely back from all her thoughts as she put a hand to her chin, her brows drawn in a line of confusion.
"Does he have a last name?" She pondered as she shifted on the bed using one of her hands to support her. "I've never heard his last name in any legends and he's never told me—," She blinked several times. "Who doesn't have a last name though?" She tapped her chin in thought. "I should ask him, or maybe Miroku, Miroku would know." Allowing the thought to leave her she stood from the bed and scrunched up her nose, unused to the clothes she was currently wearing. Clothes she had not worn in over a month. With a sigh she looked into the mirror that rested next to the Captain's desk and took in her form, her mind momentarily forgetting her previous question, leaving it behind her for now—something to be thought on later.
She was dressed in the same manner as the women she had seen on Havana's docks earlier except her outfit was a bright and vibrant green with blue accents that lined every ruffle on its bottom and on the sleeves of the dress. She had to admit the outfit was beautiful, bright and cheerful, elegant in an odd and exuberant way. She reached down and took hold of the dress picking it up slightly, holding the fabric away from her body so she could sway this way and that. It was strange to wear a dress with no hoop or constricting stay underneath. She felt free, and yet feminine. Never in her life had she felt both those things at the same time. Slowly, Kagome allowed herself to sway back and forth, taking in her manifestation in the mirror, entranced by her own motion.
"Back at Port Royal I never would have been allowed to wear something so brightly colored," she thought as she moved the fabric in time with her own swaying, watching the colors swirl together, the blue becoming green and the green becoming blue. She smiled at her own image and then frowned when she noticed the small gemstone hanging just above the part of the dress that dipped low. Gingerly, she raised her hand watching her own actions in the mirror as she touched the gem carefully. "Inuyasha." She allowed the name to leave her lips as she fingered the gem. "I wish I could remember when you gave this to me." She watched the gem sparkle. "It had to be right after Manten." She concluded. "But I don't exactly remember it happening." She huffed and dropped the gem from her hand her eyes watching it as it slowly descended back to her chest in the mirror's reflection.
Something flashed before her eyes suddenly red eyes, angry and scared, all at the same time, sharp teeth elongated canine fangs, a flash of silver, a scream, a snarl and then silence.
Kagome blinked several times as she came back to herself unsure of what she had just experienced. Blinking slowly, she reached towards the jewel once more only to hesitate and pull her hand away as if she didn't wish to see again. Taking a deep breath she closed her eyes and bit her lip as confusion surmounted in her heart. "What was that?" She questioned herself as she opened her eyes just a crack and looked at the jewel. "Am I going crazy or did that," She let her thought trail off for just a moment as she stared at the gems reflection. "Did that actually happen?" She shook her head and laughed. "No, I'm just being silly." She said into the air as she looked at her reflection in the mirror ignoring the jewel deliberately in favor of looking at the dress. "Oh my," She spoke out loud as she just took a good look at the amount of space separating the jewel and the beginning of the fabric. "Was it always that low?" She gasped as she brought a hand up to tug on the top portion of the outfit the feeling of self-consciousness washing away the unknown memory for now.
She tugged the fabric upwards trying to give herself some more modesty but no matter what she did she still felt slightly exposed by the low dip in the dress' collar. Blushing lightly, if only too herself, she sighed and wrapped her arms around her small frame, as she looked into the mirror, higher, away from the dress and too her face—to her short hair. Reaching upwards with one hand, the other hand still holding her waist tightly, she touched the end of one of her locks. She had to confess, her hair was longer than it had been a month ago when she had first cut it off but still, it was short reaching just underneath her ears, curling at the ends. Sango had done her best to make her hair look more feminine, adding a ring of flowers to her head (where Sango had acquired the flowers, Kagome was still unsure.)
Overall, Kagome had to admit, she did look like a woman but still, the lack of hair made her feel less feminine, less beautiful. In a way she wished she was still dressed in the clothes of a man, she had been more comfortable in them. When one was dressed as a man, she had realized, one didn't have to worry about such things as long hair or perfect hair styles or perfect dresses or even having shoes on their feet—a thought that still made her blush from the embarrassment of the previous incident back at Port Royal.
"Men have it easy." She concluded with a sigh pushing the awkward memory aside.
Glancing at her feet she took in the sight of her shoes, they weren't the shoes she was used to—not the shoes of a man and most diffidently not the shoes of an English woman. They were something that Sango had referred to as sandals. She had seen some of the native Jamaicans wearing something similar but she had never ventured to wear the odd footwear herself, opting instead for the traditional English lace ups since she felt that the sandals would make her feel exposed if she wore them. Wiggling her toes, she grimaced, part of her liking the feeling of foot freedom and another, bigger part of her, resenting it, longing to be dressed normally—or at least as close to normal as she could get.
She was just about to adjust her dress for what felt like the hundredth time when the door suddenly swung open, the sound of someone's voice coming with it startling her.
"Are you ready yet?" It said irritated. "I mean come on if we're gonna eat you bette—," The voice trailed off, dying in the air, evaporating into nothing as the Captain stood in the doorway, his eyes trained on her. He blinked several times, as if he didn't believe his own eyes. "Kago—me?" Inuyasha cleared his throat and turned away in slight shock. Sango had told him that Kagome and herself were going to dress as women for the night. At the time he had thought nothing of it but now, seeing her dressed in the colorful and somewhat revealing clothing of the Cuban women left him feeling somewhat—allured.
Kagome blushed from head to toe, turning away from the Captain her eyes looking for anywhere to focus on except him. "Yes—?" She trailed off not wanting to say 'Inuyasha' for fear of embarrassment but diffidently not wanting to call him Captain.
Inuyasha gulped his thoughts continuing on as he took her in, fully appreciating Sango's work. Kagome was absolutely beautiful, her curves apparent in the traditional clothes of Cuba, the bright colors a striking similarity to her bright personality, the blue highlighting her love of the sea, and the green exemplifying her gentle earthly quality. And her hair—her short locks were engaging with the small flower wreath nestled in them. Her little curls of black latching onto the yellow of the beautiful heliconia flowers as if they were a crawling vine looking for something to grasp. The blush on her cheeks only added to that innate innocent earthy yet sexy quality about her, showing her youth and wholesomeness. It was a look that only Kagome could have—to be so sexual and curvy and delectable while still maintaining such a pure and subtle look. She was simply amazing, absolutely stunning, and seemingly gorgeous.
He smiled at her as his eyes drifted lower and froze when he noticed the little jewel shimmer against her sweet tan skin. He gulped as his memories shifted between another bare of bare shoulders and Kagome's own. He could see her standing as well as she put on her dressing gown that gemstone hanging around her neck, dangling close to breast he had just touched. He shook his head bringing himself away from the memory as he looked at the girl in front of him wanting to see only her instead, "Kikyo never wore anything so bright." He frowned at his first thought unable to stop it as more came. "She was always so dark, deep, and depressing." He narrowed his gaze. "She always seemed to have this haunting bleak outlook of existence from the very start moment I met her. Kikyo just never knew the same joy Kagome just naturally does."
Carefully, as if he was afraid of what he might see, Inuyasha looked up into Kagome's eyes half expecting to see the same haunting knowledge that Kikyo had always had hidden within the recesses of her eyes. But when he looked into Kagome Dresmont's eyes, he didn't see that same dark knowledge no—those grey eyes were a sea, a vast and captivating sea. He stared at them, almost inhaling mentally the sight of the storm that lay within her. It was so different from the black eyes he remembered from the other girl so long ago. Kikyo's eyes had been like a moonless night, a place of no hope, of despair, of death, of destruction, of unhappiness. There had been no light in her eyes—none.
And looking into Kagome's eyes now, he came to a strange revelation. Kagome's eyes weren't the opposite of Kikyo'seyes but they weren't the same either. They were grey, a mixture of what is black and what is white. Kagome's eyes were a turbulent storm, shifting between a state of peace and happiness to another state of chaos and heart break. They were eyes that saw two sides of an ever flipping coin. They saw the good in things, they saw the bad in things but whether they saw bad or good they always watched to see if that good might change, if that bad might change. It was as if, Kagome could see both the bad in people and the good in people and as if she knew that both a bad man and a good man could easily change and become their opposite.
Kagome's eyes knew the truth, they knew an absolute truth that Kikyo's eyes had never known. Kikyo could only see the bad, could only see her lot in life and not grow beyond it. Kagome—Kagome—knew she could change it, she realized that nothing was set in stone that the world was a malleable tangible ever changing thing and all of that was rooted deep within her misty grey stormy eyes.
As if coming out of a trance Inuyasha shook his head, pushing the complicated thoughts away from him. "They're just eyes." He told himself sternly before looking at Kagome again, this time focusing only on the expression on the girls face—she looked leery as if worried that he had stayed silent too long. "Um—we're headed to dinner. Is Shippo in bed?" His voice sounded like a prepubescent boy to his own ears—that knowledge made him scowl.
"Yes," She replied as she shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot. "He fell asleep the second he hit the pillow."
"Good." Inuyasha got out, sounding manlier this time. The two stood in silence for a few moments, the Captain scratching the back of his head and Kagome swaying slightly, her hands clamped behind her back. "Well," He finally spoke as his eyes stared at something across the room, in the opposite direction from where Kagome stood. "I guess, we should go into town, Miroku and Sango are hungry and—we—," He looked at her for a moment, his eyes intent as he took her in as if debating something to himself. Then he licked his lips and turned away from her, his ears pressing back on his head as he somewhat twitched—appearing nervous. "We should go."
Kagome would have laughed at his nervousness had she not felt just as nervous herself. "Yes, we should." Bravely she stepped towards the door, towards him—brushing past him and out into the hallway, her heart pounding against her ribcage as she made brief contact with his shoulder. Before she could start towards Sango and Miroku's room his faint voice touched her ears.
"Kagome."
She stopped, frozen as he called to her, his voice not an inquiry but not a demand or statement either. "Yes?" She questioned, turning herself sideways so she could see him.
He swallowed visibly, causing her pause. "You look," He froze and she watched as he shifted his eyes in every direction except towards her, a nervous habit that she would come to associate with him being highly uncomfortable with his own feelings. He reached up and scratched the back of his head, another nervous habit she would come to recognize as the weeks turned into months. "Well," He took a deep breath and forced himself to look at her. "You look—," His resolve seemed to weaken as he looked away his lips pursed as his courage failed him. "Like a girl."
Kagome stood unmoving, her eyes staring at the Captain, unsure of what that meant. "Um," She tried to speak but really couldn't find the words. The Captain's eyes finally stopped shifting and landed on her as if daring her to be angry with him or even say anything negative. "Thank you—I guess." She added quietly her eyes seeming confused yet happy as they gazed back into his own, a turbulent sea that for the moment was calm.
He nodded and then his face appeared as if it might have flushed as he shuffled from foot to foot but Kagome would never be sure. "Whatever, let's get going." With that he hurried past her, closing the door in his wake as he walked towards Sango and Miroku's door.
Kagome stood frozen in her spot unsure of how to react but knowing she shouldn't be mad. The whole situation was unreal to her, completely and utterly unreal. This was the man who was supposed to be a blood thirsty pirate and yet, once again, he was proving to her that he was in fact just a young boy like any other—awkward and shy. The thought made her smile, he was just a normal guy, a good guy, who was withdrawn and self-conscious to the point of being almost pitiful. She started to giggle—it was insane, the great pirate Captain Inuyasha, whose legend said he would sooner kill you than look at you—was simply any other man, a typical man, a man like any other, "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." She recited in her head, "How right you were, Shakespeare."
Her lips pursed and a louder giggle escaped her throat causing the Captain to stop and look back at her.
His ears pressed flat against his skull, which only made her amusement greater. He scrunched his nose, a slight growl coming from his throat as irritation came off of him in waves. "Oi, why are you laughing this time?" He barked (literally so, at the end of the sentence) and then crossed his arms over his chest, huffing with irritation. "Hey! Did you hear me? What are you laughing at?"
Kagome took in the sight of him standing with his arms crossed over his chest, his nose pointed in the air arrogantly and she felt her lips twitch. The situation was really hitting her now, taking control of her from head to toe. This man—this tall strong feared man, this man who could kill her without thought nor reason, whose legend used to scare her as a child—this man was standing right in front of her, ears pressed back on his head and lips drawn together in irritation. He wasn't mean at all, he was a normal man with normal reactions. The very thought made the smile finally break out on her face, the soft giggles becoming chuckles as she covered her mouth with one hand and clutched her stomach with the other.
"Oi?" When she didn't reply he uncrossed his arms and she swore she saw the hair on his ears stand on end. "Kagome." The sound ended in a growl, a very high pitched growl.
Kagome took a deep breath as she thought of a noise like that coming from a raping, murdering privateer. The chuckling started to get louder, held behind her hand—it was impossible.
His ears pinned back to his head and he growled slightly, his hands coming down to his sides frustrated before letting out a whine, a true whine like a small puppy begging for a threat. "Stop that!"
With those words it was like a dam burst opened and she began to laugh, her voice ringing out around them, like a bell chiming in his ears. He watched her, his first reaction to yell and scream, to force her to stop laughing at him, to grab her and shake her until the laughter stopped but as he reached for her, as he started to let his anger take control, he saw her eyes open.
That turbulent calm was filled with an emotion he had seen on her face only a handful of times—absolute mirth, innate happiness, a carefree attitude that only Kagome Dresmont could ever have.
It filled her, taking over those grey eyes causing little sparkles of light to touch her pupils and then—a smile came over her face, so bright that it made those eyes appear dim as it created an inherent bliss. That bliss spread all over her, touching every part of her. And all of that, the mirth in her eyes, those sparkles in her pupils, that absolute ovation on her lips—all of it—was caused by him, directed towards him, was there because of him.
For the first time in a very long time, Inuyasha felt like he had done something good. To have caused that smile, to have caused those sparkling eyes, to have cause that euphoric pleasure—no one could be worthless if they could cause that.
"I'm sorry." Kagome said through that happy elated cloud. "The whole situation just struck me." She wiped her eyes, brushing at tears that had started to collect there. "It's so strange."
Inuyasha watched as those cheerful eyes lit on him, full of liquid joy as white gentle hands removed the traces of it. His heart felt just a little lighter in his chest at the sight and he allowed the mounting anger to ebb.
"You're strange." She finally told him, the smile spreading, her eyes closing, her head tilting to the side as another small laugh escaped her.
Inuyasha's back went stiff with irritation at her words but he couldn't bring himself to be truly angry. "You're the one that's strange." He told her as he reached to knock on Sango and Miroku's door the sound hollow to both their ears. "I don't even know why I put up with you." He told her bluntly. "Always laughing at stupid shit." He growled and tapped his foot, waiting impatiently for someone to answer to door.
Miroku opened the door to his and Sango's room. He looked between the giggling Kagome and the stiff Inuyasha and smirked. "What's this then?" He questioned with an unused British accent.
"Just what it looks like." The Captain said with mild irritation touching his voice (a forced gesture to maintain his dignity) as he crossed his arms over his chest and glared at the young Miroku.
"Exactly what it looks like you say?" Miroku seemed to think for a minute, closing his eyes as he tilted his chin back and taped it with his pointer finger. Suddenly, his eyes popped opened and he snapped his fingers causing everyone to raise an eyebrow. "A young woman laughing at you?"
Inuyasha glared at Miroku darkly. "Fuck off." He told him with a snarl.
Miroku laughed along with Kagome heartily as he passed his father figure and smiled at Kagome Dresmont, knowing now more than ever that this young woman was going to fit in with their makeshift family just fine. With that thought he reached forward, taking Kagome's hand tightly into his own, the mischief of being his father's son strong in his heart. "Awe," He said twirling her once to get a good look at her. "If it wasn't for my lovely Sango, I dare say I would have been interested in you, such a beautiful lady."
"Mr. Miroku!" Kagome blushed all over but laughed all the same as the Captain growled low in his throat.
"Move the hand or lose the hand, pup." Inuyasha growled out with his eyes narrowed.
Miroku simply laughed as Sango came to stand behind him. The woman crossed her arms over her chest, reaching forward to grab Miroku's ear. "Come on lover boy," She commanded as she yanked him from the room.
"Sango, that hurts!" Miroku complained as the able woman dragged him down the hallway.
Kagome watched with her bright smile still trained on her face, the laughter still bubbling inside of her. And at her side, watching with fixated eyes was the Captain. He stood silent as he took in her fluorescent smile, the way she tilted her head slightly to the side, and the way her face lit up with all her delight.
Without his consent, a slow smile started to form on Inuyasha's face, a smile so small that it was hard to tell if it was even there but it was a smile none-the-less. And as he continued to watch her, as he watched her walk away towards Sango and Miroku he found his heart lightening in his chest even more. Even after so many conflicting thoughts and turbulent emotions he had been having over the past few days, he still felt it lighten.
Because, in the end, it was easy to smile; after all, Kagome Dresmont—her mirth—her happiness—her bliss—her very nature—all of it was contagious.
End of Chapter
Please Review
Edited for Content 8/1/2012
Congrats to Tjam for being reviewer 450!
Bonus Point:
What is the name of the cat with two tails in the series InuYasha?
Last Chapter's Bonus Point:
And the answer is "The mystery of the new moon and the black haired Inuyasha." Congrats to the winners!
Mikomi, Byss, DeAunna, TheBookAddict, RavenShadow, Purple Dragon Ranger, glon morski, AriaLuvsInu, BoredGirl17, xwishfulstars, Warm-Amber92, inu-luva123, InuKag4eva, ravenreux, serenity095, TheRealInuyasha, Angel, Laken
Notes:
Shares on a Pirate Ship – there is not much evidence to tell us the standard for pirate's shares, however, Bartholomew Roberts, also known as "Black Bart" or "Black Barty", did include in his Code of Conduct for his crew members a detailed description of how many shares each man was granted.
ARTICLE X - The captain and the quartermaster shall each receive two shares of a prize, the master gunner and boatswain, one and one half shares, all other officers one and one quarter, and private gentlemen of fortune one share each.
Of course I modified it in this fanfiction, consider it an authors liberty or something like that.
Puss and Boots is a fairy tale that was originally published in French by Charles Perrault in debatably the first children's book, "Histoires ou contes du temps passé (Tales and Stories of the Past with Morals)" in 1697, better known as the original Tales of Mother Goose. It was translated into English in the year 1729 by Robert Samber.
Fun Fact: The reason we have Mother Goose is because in the original French printing by Charles Perrault, the illustration on the front of the book was of a woman reading the tales to three children. Underneath the illustration was the inscription "Contes De Ma Mere Loye" or "Tales of Mother Goose."
A rumba dress, Bata Cubana, is a traditional type of women's clothing worn at fiestas and other types of celebrations in Cuba. The colors, the ruffles and the material are a mix of African, Spanish and even French influences. (This is what Kagome and Sango both are wearing.)
"What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet," is from the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, Act II, Scene II, Lines 45-46.
Next Chapter:
A Tavern in Havana
See you then!
UNEDITED
POSTED 5/4/2011