It was all Kagome could do right now not to scream at the horrible, gossiping, selfish, cruel harpies who were whispering such nasty things about her mama, just because Sesshōmaru-sama had been kind enough to help the heavily-pregnant woman manoeuvre around during the funeral. It was bad enough that Kagome herself couldn't scream at the unfairness (or the relief; don't think about that you can't let them notice because it wasn't Daddy's fault, the Shikon made him act like that) of losing her daddy because some stupid ningen had been driving drunk; her mama did not deserve to have to be where this stuff was being said. Even though her mama was probably either grieving too much to listen or simply couldn't hear the women – Kagome's use of her reiki and miko-ki (as she called the pink purification power she had instead of the reiryoku that most miko-sama, Shinto priests and priestesses, and her grandpa had) from such a young age was changing her body permanently, or so it seemed.
Deciding to shut the harpies up, she sniffled and tugged on Sesshōmaru-sama's sleeve, giving him a warning that she was about to be ever-so-slightly informal with him with titles – it was time those women knew exactly what place Sesshōmaru-sama had in the life of their family and regretted what they were saying about her mama. He looked down at her, and, after helping her mama sit down, crouched down in front of her. "Kagome-chan?"
"T-this Kagome j-just wanted to t-thank you for helping Mama, S-Sesshōmaru-sensei. Since… since Grandpa isn't strong enough to help her, and this Kagome knows you have better things to do than help her mama around just because Grandpa asked you to help Mama because she knows you since you're this Kagome's sword-sensei."
She had composed herself very well by the time she finished speaking – and all those nasty women had shut up, and Kagome could feel how incredibly appalled every last one of them were for assuming things like that about a grieving, pregnant widow with a little girl… Especially because every last one of them had also realised that the six year old girl had almost certainly heard them saying such reprehensible things – and if the girl could hear them, then undoubtedly the incredibly handsome sensei of hers could as well.
It didn't excuse their complete pettiness, rudeness, and total misconduct, but Kagome loved her empathy right now, because the shame radiating off of those horrible women was just what they deserved for thinking things like that about her mama. Especially since Kagome knew well and good that three of them were yōkai and hanyō—they weren't even attempting to conceal or restrain their yōki, the idiots—and could smell that there was no improper contact between her sword-sensei and her mama, they had just been being vin… Vin…di… What was that word Toga-san taught her last week? Oh! Vin-dic-tive! Vindictive. Right. All because Sesshōmaru-sama was handsome and they wanted to be with him.
As if. Rin-sama was the only woman that Sesshōmaru-sama had eyes for, and they made such a beautiful couple together. "You are very welcome, little Kagome-chan. Now, we must be quiet."
Sorrow washed over Kagome again as she nodded, her thought before his response pushing her into remembering how wonderful her Mama and Daddy had looked last week, the night before the accident, and she covered her face, keeping her sobs silent as she wished for nothing more than to be with Toga-san right now. Sesshōmaru-sama was technically supposed to be his replacement, since Toga-san couldn't be felt anywhere except the shrine grounds (well, and the forest – but Kagome supposed that was a part of the shrine, still), even though he could be seen by people he needed to be seen by.
Kagome had almost been mad at her alpha when he said he wouldn't be coming to the funeral, until he quietly and gently explained to her that if he had to watch her cry and be unable to comfort her, it would probably break him. Kagome thought about what it would be like if Toga-san was upset like she was, and she couldn't help him, but still had to watch…
The six year old had hugged her absolute best friend and her alpha very tightly then, and promised she wouldn't be mad at him, no matter how much she missed him, and that she would come right back there to be with him so that he could hold her and comfort her.
Out of everyone in the family, Grandpa was taking this the easiest, but Kagome already knew why, although she had sworn to herself that she wouldn't say anything to her mama about it. Especially because it might make Mama angry with Toga-san and Kagome just could not handle having her mama be mad at her alpha. Even more especially because Kagome had a sneaking suspicion that if she had to choose, she would pick Toga-san…
Okay, no more thinking about that – it wouldn't be happening. Mama really liked Toga-san, and Mama would never, ever find out that Grandpa had known, ever since he met Toga-san thirteen years ago, that Daddy was going to die this year. He had just made them all "guest-rooms" so that when Daddy died, they could move to the shrine and live there, because Mama had almost no memories of Daddy there, but at "home" she had so many memories that she was crying all the time.
Besides, Mama had stayed home so she could take care of Kagome before and after school, which meant Mama didn't have a job – and being pregnant with Kagome's baby brother meant she couldn't get a job – but Sesshōmaru-sama and several friends of Toga-san's donated to the shrine to keep it up and running and make their lives easier – especially once they found out about Toga-san being Kagome's alpha. She didn't really understand why that mattered, but she didn't care either. Toga-san was pack, and that was all that mattered.
Kagome had done a good job of distracting herself, because the funeral was over now, and Kagome decided that, since she was always a good, obedient girl, she could ask to be selfish, just this once. Besides – Kagome knew that her face reminded her mama an awful lot of what her daddy might have looked like if he was a girl, and that sometimes her mama hurt, when she looked at her. This would be good for the both of them.
So she walked around Sesshōmaru-sama as he helped her mama up, and then tightly grasped her mama's shaking hand, tugging it very gently. Since she had waited for her mama to be standing, she immediately got attention from both Mama and Sesshōmaru-sama. "Mama… Please may I go stay with Grandpa and Toga-san, and go camping for a while? We were going to ask in a couple weeks, before… Daddy… But… This Kagome just can't be anywhere where she remembers Daddy right now… It hurts too much, Mama."
Her mama squeezed her hand, and Kagome obligingly stood up onto one of the chairs, wrapping her arms around her mama; as difficult as it was, with the baby-bump. "Don't worry, baby girl. Your mama understands – you need to be around pack and your alpha right now – he probably needs to be around you just as much; after all, you're his favourite pack member and you are hurting an awful lot right now."
The cerulean eyed miko-in-training looked over at Sesshōmaru-sama, who simply looked amused, rather than upset, at the statement her mama had just made, and she said quietly, "But how can this Kagome be Toga-san's favourite with Sesshōmaru-sama around? Sesshōmaru-sama is family, this Kagome is not."
The daiyōkai who looked like a less masculine (but still not feminine – not by any means) version of his father chuckled softly and combed his claws through her bangs. "You will understand as you grow older, pup. Come, now – this Sesshōmaru will take you to the shrine, and then come back to keep your mother company for the rest of the time it is necessary for her to be here."
Kagome understood that Sesshōmaru-sama was going to fly her to her new home, and then fly back, so her mama wasn't alone for very long – especially since Sesshōmaru-sama had just taken down a barrier that Kagome hadn't even felt go up, which meant nobody had heard what the plans were. So, now that they were "public" again, Sesshōmaru-sama said to her mama, "I will be taking Kagome-chan to her ride back to the shrine – it will not take long, please stay comfortable until I return."
Sesshōmaru-sama managed to insinuate that he was handing her off to somebody else without even lying! Wow! Kagome hoped to be able to do stuff like that when she grew up! Her mama kissed her cheek; Kagome gave her a return kiss, and then stepped down from the chair, holding onto Sesshōmaru-sama's hand as they stepped outside, walked until they reached an alleyway, and then stepped into it, Sesshōmaru-sama picking her up gently. Light enfolded them and they shot upwards, flying towards the shrine faster than Kagome could even say "Wow!"
They were there in less than a minute, and Toga-san immediately took her from his son, nodding towards the slightly shorter male and softly saying, "Thank you, Sesshōmaru. All of her lessons are cancelled for five more days; please make arrangements for her school work to be held for her and delivered to her at the end of these five days, so that she has the weekend to catch up on what she missed, as well as switching her home-school to the one specifically for shrine children."
Sesshōmaru-sama nodded back at his father and responded with an, "Of course, Father. Thank you for entrusting this Sesshōmaru with your pack member's education. I will allow Kagome-chan to complete her school work before beginning her other lessons once more. This Sesshōmaru hopes that you manage to enjoy your break and that your grieving period does not last very long, little Kagome-chan."
Kagome looked solemnly up at Sesshōmaru-sama and nodded, "This Kagome didn't know when it would happen, but she was warned that her daddy would be dying this year… And as much as she loved her daddy, ever since he met Toga-san he wasn't as close to Kagome… She thinks he didn't know how to deal with her being raised by someone who wasn't him, and who wasn't even ningen. I still miss him, but right now I hurt more for Mama and my baby brother who will never meet Daddy, although it'll be better once we're all living here like we're supposed to be."
Her alpha's son nodded to her and then left them alone, leading Kagome to tightly grip onto her alpha and sob silently into his kimono, while he growled to her; soft, comforting, loving growls that let her know she would never be alone as long as he was around, and that he would never leave her. Before she realised it, they were in a cave that had a futon, a fire, fish roasting over the fire and… There – a second futon with… Oh, Grandpa was there, too! Grandpa had trouble with crowds outside of shrine work so he hadn't gone to the funeral, instead just burning incense for Daddy as was proper. He smiled at her and when Toga-san settled down with her on the bigger futon, he came over and began rubbing her back gently while her alpha groomed her hair.
"Here, Kagome, while we do this, show me what you remember from your lessons on barriers; right from the beginning – but using your ki instead of earth-ki."
Kagome obeyed without questioning, because her alpha had not disagreed with her grandpa – Kagome might only ever obey her alpha without question, but if he didn't disagree with something someone else told her to do, Kagome did it, because that was as good as if Toga-san himself had ordered it. Not to mention, Kagome obeyed her grandpa and her lesson-sensei far easier than she obeyed most others.
The first kind of barrier Kagome did was the first kind she learned, channelling her miko-ki through her bones, then her muscles, then her veins, mixing it with her blood and with her reiki, and pushing it out of her skin – keeping it, for five minutes, hovering just against her body, before exploding it outwards so that it made a sphere; one that, luckily, both of her yōkai pack members were immune to.
Then after five more minutes (Kagome had long ago learned to tell time using her instincts; she knew the time down to the second at all times, and knew so instantly – both modern time and camping time), she pulled the barrier back in, and shoved her reiki back into place where the miko-ki had been – Toga-san said she was getting better at keeping them both inside the same places at the same time, but right now she was only to work on barriers, not to work on allowing her reiki to make her body different at the same time as she did her barriers.
Next, she made a barrier like Grandpa taught her to do. Miko, monks, priests, and priestesses (not all priestesses were miko who could purify yōkai) couldn't channel their reiki, reiryoku, and hōriki through their blood, veins, and muscles like yōkai could their yōki – actually they probably could if they tried, but none of them ever tried. Grandpa could be excused because he'd not known about how yōki worked, and he was getting much older now, but Kagome intended on informing every miko-sama, monk-sama, priest-sama, and priestess-sama that she met from now on how to more safely channel their energy through their body to make stronger, stabler barriers, that lasted longer and didn't make you so tired so fast.
And how to pull up energy from the earth they walked on and the trees they sat against, because that was the first kind of ki that baby yōkai learned to use, and just like a baby yōkai, when Kagome had been a baby her alpha had taught her what to do. Whenever she was outside at her park before it got paved over, she did what he taught her, and learned how to make herself have more energy than she already had – although, Kagome had an awful lot in spite of most of it being sealed away like Toga-san told her it was, so she didn't have to worry about that so much. Toga-san said that using earth-ki made her other ki stronger the more she used it, so she was more powerful because of her use than she would be without using it so regularly.
Anyway, this was stupidly easy to do – all Kagome did was reach inside herself, pull the energy out, shove it past her skin, and make a sphere around her. When she finished, she was humming in a mixture of contentment – from the back rub and the grooming – and boredom, from the barrier being absurdly easy for the young girl. Because she learned the right way to channel energy, the yōkai way, all of the ningen things were super easy for her. She knew her grandpa was proud – but he was smart and more proud that she had mastered using her reiki and miko-ki like Toga-san and Sesshōmaru-sama used their yōki, than he was proud at how easy Kagome was finding the basics of how ningen used their reiryoku, hōriki, and (very rarely) reiki. He'd already promised to teach her how to make sutra and ofuda to seal, protect, dispel, exorcise, and other various things. Her grandpa might be less powerful than she was (and losing power every year as he got older), but he was, as she had thought earlier, really smart.
By the time her alpha and her grandpa finished drilling her on using her miko-ki and her reiki, she was all tired out, and fell asleep cuddled close against Toga-san's chest, clutching tightly to him and having completely forgotten the reason she had sought them out to begin with – just as they intended.