The day of the marriage between both inu hanyous approached fast. Inuyasha played with the children to keep them busy and not rushing into the house where the preparations were being taken care of. He knew if one of them ran in, he would be sat a couple of times for not watching out.
Inside, Kagome and her mother were fussing over which type of cake they would choose and what kind of dress Kagome would wear for the big event. Not long ago, they had decided on the type of theme that they would use for the wedding. They would use flowers of many colours and little pink orbs for the guest that would be placed at each of their spots for the dinner. Kagome had agreed for the pink orbs, saying that she would create them all for her wedding day. They would be magical, as would the atmosphere of the shrine area.
The phone rang, and Mrs. Higurashi went to pick it up, putting down a catalogue about marriage gowns.
" Hello," She spoke into the phone, listened for a second and handed it off to her daughter.
" Hi Kagome!" Three girls yelled into the phone at the other end of the line, causing Kagome to wince and hold the device well away from her ear as she was in her hanyou form.
" Hi guys. What's going on?" Kagome replied, rubbing at her ears.
" We wanted to see if you were still sick. You know we all get very worried about you with all of these sicknesses you get," Eri said.
" Well, to tell you the truth, I'm not sick. The past couple of days, I've been planning my wedding with my boyfriend," Kagome said and instantly held the phone away from her ear, knowing full well that all three would screech like the damned in hell when it all sunk in.
She didn't have very long to wait. The screeching from the other end of the phone line probably could be heard around the world and could have woken the dead from their sleep.
" You're getting married!" Ayumi said, surprised. " To that hunk of yours? Gee, you're lucky."
" He's so hot! Wish I had met someone like that, even if I would get into fights with him most of the time like you two," Eri giggled across the line.
" When's the wedding?" Yuka asked. " Will we be in it?"
" Okay, one question at a time. Yes, it's Inuyasha. Two, the wedding is in a couple of days. And three, you guys, I've actually decided, will be the maidens of honour for me, if you don't mind."
" Okay, we'll let you go now. We've got a wedding to prepare for," Ayumi said and the line disconnected.
Placing the phone back in its cradle she sighed and leaned back, trying to relax. It was going to be quite a long wedding day now that her friends would be there for the whole day. After all, they would be giggling like crazy and she would have to wear her amulet to hide her hanyou form and cast a spell so they wouldn't notice her gravid condition, and so would Inuyasha. Then they probably would ask Inuyasha too many questions and confuse him half way to hell. At that moment, Shippou stuck his head in the open doorway, looking around.
" Kagome, I'm hungry," The kitsune told her as he ran to her and jumped on her lap, grinning like a maniac.
" Let's go find the others and see what I can scrounge up," Kagome said and got up from the couch, looking out the window as she did so, searching for her mate and the young human girl. " Where are Inuyasha and Rin?"
" They went for a walk a couple of minutes before I asked you about food," Shippou replied as he jumped on Kagome's shoulder, retracing Shippou's steps as she made her way to the back door.
She smelt the air as she exited her home, ears pressed against her head in fear. She smelt gunpowder, and it had just been fired, and hanyou blood. Inuyasha's blood.
" Kuso, kuso, kuso," Kagome muttered to herself as she took off, jumping on the tops of buildings to reach the area of the gunpowder and the exact area where she smelt the scent of her mate and the child she was to protect.
The place where she smelt the gunpowder was teaming with police and a couple of ambulances. Inside an ice cream shop, there was a criminal, obviously a robber, and he was holding a gun to Rin's head. The girl was terrified. She couldn't see Inuyasha, but she smelt his blood.
" Kagome, what's going on? I smell Inuyasha's blood here, and why is that man holding that thing to Rin's head?" Shippou asked, his fear penetrating Kagome's judging senses like a cloud.
" That, Shippou, is a gun, and if he fires it, Rin will be dead," Kagome explained to the kit.
" We've got to save her," Shippou cried out, causing a couple of heads to turn at the outburst.
The humans that were assembled down on the ground around the store glanced up and were amazed to see a pregnant human with dog-ears on the roof of the building in front of the main spectacle. Several news crews swung their rolling cameras to the top and filmed the strange appearance of this dog-eared person as reporters continued to do what they did best; report.
" Hush, Shippou," Kagome said as she stood up, concentrating on her bow and arrows. She grabbed them when they appeared before her and aimed one at the store window, the head of the man holding the gun to Rin's head filling her sight. Taking a deep breath, she expelled half and fired.
At that exact moment, the police fired their guns on her, causing her anger to soar to a point where she had no control over her demon blood as the bullets drilled into her upper body. She screeched in pain as the arrow she had shot killed the man. She couldn't control it and turned into her demon form, jumping down from the rooftop, snarling and growling all the way down and into the building where she grabbed Rin and an injured Inuyasha.
People scattered out of her way as she ran away from the scene, both of the people she loved on her back with Shippou clinging for life to her neck. They were amazed at the sight, but stayed out of her way as she charged down the street and into the mid morning traffic.
" What the hell is that?" Some one asked a policeman.
" That, I think, was an inu youkai in her true demon form. I didn't know if there were any of them that still existed today," The policeman answered the question that had been asked.
" Do you know how ridiculous that sounds?" the first man said, incredulous.
" Hai, I know, but do you trust your eyes with what you see? If you do trust them, you saw the exact same thing as I did just then," The policeman answered the question before turning his attention back to controlling the agitated crowd.
Kagome panted as she ran. Her brain was filled with pain, but she pushed it to the back of her mind. She was busy concentrating on avoiding cars and keeping both Rin and Inuyasha on her back. She was tiring and it showed in her movements, but she finally made it to the shrine, where she let the three off and concentrated on controlling her anger. Soon, she changed back to her hanyou miko form and collapsed by the Goshinboku, tired.
Rin ran to her, patting her head as she rested. She heard Shippou call out for Mrs. Higurashi to help with Inuyasha, but kept her attention on the pregnant girl in front of her. It was a wonder that she wasn't dead, or injured to the point where she couldn't move anymore, she thought as she gazed at the bullet wounds and furrows that ran along the girl's torso.
Sota stared at the blood that soaked Inuyasha's abdomen, where, his sister usually said that that was where most of his worst wounds came from during battles, but this wound was from a bullet, and he would heal in a little while from something so minor. He turned and wasn't surprised to see that his sister was hurt as well, but she seemed to be taking it a lot better. He had been watching T.V., flipping through the channels, but stopped when he saw that they were shooting live at an ice cream store where a bank robber had taken cover. Then the camera was swung to the top of another building when there was a small outcry of disbelief, where his sister crouched with Shippou on her shoulder. Her bow and arrows had suddenly appeared before her when she stood up and when she fired the shaft, the policemen on the ground fired their guns at her. She had cried out and changed into her true inu form, screaming and falling to the ground as she did so. She had gotten Inuyasha and Rin before they could shoot any more. The news reporter had asked a police officer a question, which was immediately answered with the fact that his sister was a youkai at that moment when she was injured.
Kagome groaned as she opened her eyes, taking in the sight of Rin's dark-haired head as she rested against her. She could feel her body healing the gun wounds, and her thoughts turned to Inuyasha. Craning her neck, she saw that he wasn't all that far from her. She could tell that he was healing fine, but she couldn't help but worry about him whenever he got hurt. She couldn't help it; it was her nature to worry about Inuyasha and the rest of the group whenever they got hurt. Sometimes she blamed herself, especially when she was the cause of the wound or around the person who got hurt. It was normal, she always told herself; it was survivor's guilt, as it was so adequately named. She felt it whenever she saw the others get hurt or she couldn't help when villagers were hurt and she couldn't do a thing about it for them.
Satisfied that she was all right and safe, Kagome got up and held Rin to her for a second, comforting the little girl before sending her on her way into the house, along with Shippou, Sota and Jii-chan. Leaning down by Inuyasha, she grabbed him in a fire man's carry and staggered to her room, where she applied antiseptic to the wound, glad to see that it was healing nicely. She settled down beside him, her hand around his middle as she fell asleep. They needed their rest before their big day arrived.
Kagome woke up on the day of her wedding full of energy. She felt as if a weight of considerable anxiety had been lifted from her shoulders. She lightly kissed Inuyasha and got up from his side. She silently went downstairs and grabbed some breakfast, heading out to the practice grounds with her bow and arrows. She had to pass the time away before her mother got up and separated her from Inuyasha, keeping the tradition of the groom not seeing the bride alive.
Mrs. Higurashi watched her daughter practice with her bow and arrows, amazed that she could aim so well. She felt the tears well up in her eyes and made no move to check them as they fell from her cheeks. Her baby girl was all grown up and about to have a child of her own, a child hanyou. The prospect of having a grand child of her own thrilled her, even if it was a half demon and half human child.
" Kagome," She called out to the girl.
Kagome turned around and walked over to the woman she thought of as her mother. The morning was passing by and she had to get ready for late afternoon, and her friends were coming soon. She quickly put on her amulet and went to her mother's room to prepare for her wedding. As soon as the door closed, she immediately changed into her wedding dress, hurrying to the bathroom to brush her teeth. As soon as she finished, she stuck her head out the door and when she saw that the coast was clear, she went to her mother's room again, where the woman waited. Applying make-up, the hanyou miko smiled to herself, as she thought about her future with her friends in the feudal era and her mate. She couldn't wait to start her life without the restrictions of this era. Sure, they would be legally married, but they wouldn't be living here.
Inuyasha woke up some time after Kagome had left his side. Today was the day they were married. Last night he had been told that he shouldn't try to see Kagome until the ceremony, which meant that he would spend most of the day alone, and as a human as he prepared. It wasn't all that hard. Kagome had explained it all to him the night before so he wouldn't be all confused when he had to dress himself in the morning. But then again, he would usually practice a couple of moves with the Tetsusaiga, but he decided against doing that this morning.
" Ohen jana," He muttered as he fell back on the bed as he tried to get the pants of his suit on him. He would never understand the clothes of this era, and preferred not to where them, but he would when necessary. The smell of Kagome's friends penetrated his senses and he hurriedly put on his amulet so they wouldn't know that he was a hanyou until he and Kagome agreed on revealing the truth to them. Still it was a hard secret to keep and he knew that Kagome now wished that she could just come out with the truth. He could hear Rin calling out to Mrs. Higurashi, telling her that Kagome's friends were here.
" Ba-chan, there are people here who claim to be Kagome's friends!" She called up the stairs, still slightly afraid of the wooden things.
" I'm coming. Rin, why don't you go see ka-chan?" Mrs. Higurashi said as she descended the stairs. She sighed as Rin shook her head.
" I'll come and get her," Inuyasha called down as he manipulated the stairs, picking Rin up as soon as she was in his arm's distance. He smiled with her, waiting as Mrs. Higurashi introduced her to each of Kagome's friends.
" Shippou's around here somewhere, but he is kind of shy of people he doesn't know that well," Inuyasha explained to the giggling girls as he made his way up the stairs, followed by the three girls and Kagome's mother. He handed the girl off to Mrs. Higurashi before going back to Kagome's room to finish getting the suit on him and then wait around while Kagome finished getting dressed. He would help with the preparations after he was done.
Down on the shrine grounds, Sota and a couple of his friends were hanging the flowers and little model replicas of the Shikon no Tama on the Goshinboku. One of his friends was teetering on the edge of a ladder and fell with a yelp. Sota stared. Inuyasha had just grabbed his friend from mid air as he was falling.
" Are you trying to be a swan?" He asked the kid, who squirmed out of the hanyou-in-disguise arms.
" No sir, just a little unstable," the kid replied.
" Have you seen Shippou around, Sota?" Inuyasha asked his mate's little brother.
" No, thought he was with you or Kagome. He'll probably show up for the ceremony though," Sota replied as he hung another bunch of flowers and a fake Shikon jewel on a low limb.
Inuyasha looked around him and noticed a little quivering form at the other end of the grounds. Smirking, he went over to it and stepped into the fauna that surrounded the shrine.
" Shippou, if you don't help or get ready, I don't think Kagome will be all that happy with you," The hanyou said. " I can't go see Kagome today until the ceremony, so you'll have to go up to her mother's room and ask for an amulet to hide your form from the others."
" Fine," Shippou said and left the cover of the bushes, taking on the form of a cat to minimize suspicion.
Inuyasha sighed and went over to the practice grounds. He had stashed Tetsusaiga there the night before, knowing full well that there was not a lot that he could do around here once he was ready, and had decided to practice new moves to protect Kagome and his pup in the feudal era. He didn't know how long it had been since he started practicing, but when he heard a twig crack under weight, he whirled around, the Tetsusaiga held in front of him.
Sota and his friends stood there, eyes open so wide that the eyes themselves could have fallen out. They were amazed that Inuyasha was such a skilled swordsman. Rolling his eyes, Inuyasha went back to his practicing, this time testing out new killing blows to a post.
" Inuyasha, it's almost time for the wedding," Sota said, trying to pry his eyes from the sight of the hanyou working out.
" Feh," Inuyasha said, placing Tetsusaiga in its sheath, placing his beloved and trust worthy sword in a secure place and heading out to the wedding area. He saw Kagome's friends standing around the door to the house and knew that Kagome was ready. He took his place at the alter and waited patiently as the music began and the flower girls walked up the aisle.
Kagome waited anxiously at the other end of the alter. She couldn't wait. She was finally getting married, even if she all ready was Inuyasha's mate, and had the marks on her neck to prove it.
Looking around at the Goshinboku, she sighed when she saw how beautiful it looked. Her idea of creating Shikon jewels and hanging them with little bunches of flowers from the limbs created a magical atmosphere.
All too soon, it was her turn to walk up the aisle. Taking a deep breath, she smiled and walked up the aisle, holding a bunch of flowers similar to the ones hanging from the god tree. She was so happy that this day had come. She had dreamed about it for a long time, stewing over her love for Inuyasha, trying to figure out how to tell him about her true feelings toward him. Now that she knew how Inuyasha felt about her, she couldn't help but give a big smile as she walked to her fellow hanyou, her love. Maybe now, they could live life in peace, without having to run around, chasing after the Shikon shards and trying to kill Naraku or anything else. Her life had just become less complicated now that he was dead and no longer a threat to her or one her friends.
When Inuyasha saw Kagome, the first thing that sprung to mind was the fact that she looked beautiful. The way that her hair swept across her shoulders in waves and the way her eyes sparkled happily made his heart leap in his chest. He couldn't wait until their pup was born, to see Kagome take care of the child as it grew. He dreaded the fact that she would take Kaede's place as head miko of the village when the older miko passed on, but it couldn't be helped. It was what they both wanted, so he settled with accepting the answer. Then he thought about her friends who had helped out. Had she told them about her true form, about being an inu hanyou? He hoped that she didn't, but then again, they weren't looking at her in sidelong glances. It relieved him that they didn't know about who she really was. He then thought about the history books that they read in school for history. They were reading about the feudal era, Kagome told him once, most likely about his little group fighting Naraku. He wondered vaguely if they had gotten to the part that revealed who the mysterious miko who travelled with them was. It sure as hell wasn't Kikyo, as most would say, seeing as Kagome looked like his old girlfriend. He was sure that it would come as a very big surprise. He suppressed a chuckle, but he would speak to Kagome about it later when they were alone.
His thoughts drifted even faster as Kagome slowly made her way to the alter. Would she know about his secret visits across the well? He had been busy making preparations in the village to have their own hut constructed. It would be his present to his love. They had just finished with Miroku and Sango's hut when he had arrived there for the first time. Sango had agreed and had whipped the villagers into a frenzy, promising that Inuyasha would pay them back by hunting down animals for food and their pelts for warmth.
Finally, she arrived and stood beside her mate. They smiled for a brief second before the priest started the ceremony. They were both smiling when the priest asked the vows, replying affirmatives when it was their turn. When they kissed, everyone applauded enthusiastically.
Then there came the food. Inuyasha didn't make a fool of himself as he ate, giving Kagome quick pecks on the cheeks, only kissing her on the lips when the crowd demanded it. Rin and Shippou, who was in a disguise, thanks to one of the charms that Kagome made for him, sat beside them, grinning as they ate and giggling when their adoptive parents kissed passionately in front of the crowd.
It was a long night. The two young ones that had taken Inuyasha and Kagome as their parents had fallen asleep at their table. Shippou still held onto a fork, stubbornly clinging to it, shifting in his sleep and letting a little bit of food still on the utensil to fall to the ground. Sighing, Kagome and Inuyasha wearily carried the two up to the hanyou miko's old room where they would sleep their last night in her era before returning across the well.
Ayumi, Eri and Yuka watched as the newly wed couple carried their adopted children into the house, not yet knowing about the true forms that lay beneath a concealing spell that hid the true forms of three that they knew. All they knew was that Kagome and Inuyasha, along with their adopted children would be happy for the rest of their lives. They never suspected anything when a shadow leapt across the moonlit area. They shrugged it off as a bird, not Kagome in her hanyou form as she headed to the highest point in the city.
Deep in the shadows, an evil watched as the three girls walked away from the Higurashi residence. It was almost time when it would attack, forcing Kagome and her mate to reveal their forms to the world. It smiled cruelly when it thought of the pain it would inflict on the two hanyous. Turning, it disappeared into the night, never leaving a trace of its existence.
Kagome could feel a danger close to her home as she entered the house with Rin in her arms. Cursing, she took off her amulet and handed Rin over to Inuyasha. Opening a window, she slipped out, leaping across the clearing where her friends stood. She was glad that Hojo hadn't come. She didn't think that she could handle him at her wedding, but she was sure that he would know about the event soon enough. She smiled to herself as she jumped from the top of each building she landed on. Her friends would have freaked if they had seen her in her true form in a wedding dress instead of it being hidden under her true mother's amulet.
As she reached a tall tower, she sniffed the air, knowing that there was an evil in her time. Tomorrow she would go back to the place she know considered as her home and talk with Inuyasha. She knew that one of the times in the future when she would come home, there would be an attack. She could sense it. Shrugging it off, she went back to her mother's place to rest for the remainder of the night.
The next morning, Rin woke up early. She saw that Inuyasha and Kagome were still asleep. Shaking Shippou awake, she whispered in his ear. Together, with mischievous glints in their eyes they tickle both hanyous, causing them to wake up shrieking in surprise.
The two hanyous retaliated, tickling the children before they stopped and went downstairs for some breakfast before they packed up and went across the well, back to the feudal era. Soon after, they were all ready; waiting while everyone said their good byes.
" I'll be back in a couple of months mom," Kagome called out as they all headed to the well house.
" All right dear. We'll be here for you when you return," Mrs. Higurashi called back, holding back the tears that threatened to overflow.
Across the well, Inuyasha and Kagome hoisted the bags of supplies and gifts onto their shoulders and started back to Kaede's village. Rin and Shippou played together as they walked. The day was bright and sunny with hardly any clouds in the sky. Soon they arrived at the village, meeting both Sango and Miroku on the way past Kaede's empty hut, seeing as she was at another village, helping them heal the sick. They made small, unimportant talk as they absently walked to two huts that sat on the outskirts of the village.
" So how was it back home Kagome?" Sango asked the hanyou miko, turning to face the girl she thought of has her sister.
" It was amazing. Inuyasha proposed to me and we made it official. He even went as far as buying this ring with my mother," Kagome replied, showing her wedding ring to the taijiya.
" It's beautiful," Sango said, nearly drooling over the piece of jewellery. The sapphire and diamonds grabbed at her attention, riveting her eyes to the ring.
" So, Kagome, are you expecting your child soon?" Miroku asked, trying his best to keep a straight face as his mind whirled with the thoughts of seeing her and the child as it came into the world of the living. He quickly tried to maintain his poker face, but some one must have noticed that it was slipping, because he suddenly received a fist to the back of the head.
" Oi, monk, get that idea out of your head. You are not going to be in the hut when Kagome gives birth to our pup," Inuyasha said, his fist still raised threateningly over the monk's head.
" Inuyasha, if he has those thoughts about seeing me give birth to our child, let them run through his head. But if he actually is in that hut where I will give birth, or ever thinks about that idea around me, I will personally hurt him, with Sango's help of course," Kagome said, flexing her claws and turning a cold, hard gaze on the man with the purple robes.
Miroku cringed under the gaze. He now knew that he had to curb his thoughts and probably work more on his poker face, especially around these two hanyous. He also knew that if he didn't, he would probably get hurt even more, Miroku thought as he rubbed the bump on his head.
Kagome lifted her head as the two newly constructed huts came into view. She sniffed the air and smelt the fresh scent of pine wood and tar to keep the hut almost water proof in the downpours, when the season came around, which was also in a couple of months, about the time when her child was due, and the winter season. She was tired of having the large stomach and leaning back to balance herself. She prayed that when her child was born, the evil that she had sensed in her era would not attack.
" Whose huts are these?" Kagome asked as she went over to inspect it. The work was exceptionally done and the raven-haired girl was tempted to congratulate the builders on their good work.
" Well, that one on the right is ours," Sango said, pointing at the hut. " And that one, well, ask Inuyasha."
" Inuyasha, what do you have to do with these huts?" Kagome asked, turning to face her mate, eyes questioning him as well.
" While you were preparing for the wedding, I came back across the well and I asked the villagers to build a hut for you and me, and our child. They agreed, only when Sango told them that I would help them through out the winter," Inuyasha said, hiding a blush as he answered his mate's question.
" Arigatou, Inuyasha," Kagome murmured, burying her hair in his silver hair. She smiled as she felt him relax under her touch and whispered to him, " I love you so much Inuyasha."
" I love you too, Kagome," Inuyasha murmured.
Inu—dog
Hanyou—half demon
Kitsune—fox
Kuso—shit, damn, fuck
Kit—short for kitsune
Hai—yes
Youkai—full demon
Miko—priestess
Ohen jana—damn it
Ba-chan—grandmother
Ka-chan—mother
Arigatou—thank you