Sesshōmaru-kun's adorable curiosity had been absolutely nothing compared to Shippō-kun, with whom Kagome not only immediately fell in love, but also immediately adopted exactly in the kitsune way. See, kitsune never, ever, no matter what, left an orphaned kit alone. Full stop. It did not matter what the situation was, if an adult kitsune came across an abandoned or orphaned kit they immediately adopted that kit as their child. It went far deeper than simple culture and into genetic law territory. Their instincts literally would not let them do otherwise. Kagome's blatant use of kitsune gestures and mannerisms that had begun the very moment she saw the small (and beyond powerful for his age; having an almost fully humanoid form—the only things were his foot-paws and tail—at only around seven? This boy was probably the son of a daiyōkai kitsune, which were incredibly rare) kit made him intensely comfortable in her presence.
It took her less than ten minutes to have a sobbing, grieving little boy in her arms, clutching at the front of her kimono and letting her know exactly how much he missed his Papa and how unfair it was that he'd lost him and how much he wanted to hurt the thunder brothers for killing his only family. Yasha had been acutely uncomfortable and left; shockingly enough, however, Sesshōmaru-kun had still been in the area and had, after half an hour or so, approached them, sitting next to her and confiding in the grieving boy that he still missed his father after two hundred years, and that Shippō-kun was not any less of a strong, good yōkai for his tears.
Kagome had promptly informed Shippō-kun that she would be his new mama, and that this strong, powerful inu yōkai was her eldest son, Sesshōmaru-kun. Sesshōmaru-kun himself had looked an odd mixture of both pleased and nonplussed at that, but when Shippō-kun had forgotten his tears, gasped, and excitedly asked her if that meant that this wonderful yōkai was his ani-san, then… Well, the expression on Sesshōmaru-kun's face shifted into a pleased curiosity. Shippō-kun was not a barely-controlled hanyō, not abrasive, brash, or rude, was incredibly young and therefore able to be moulded into a pleasing form, and was also kitsune – highly respected amongst pretty much any yōkai breed, because greater kitsune could communicate in spoken language even when in their true forms, a symbol of how in tune they were with their yōki, reiki, mind, and body.
Sesshōmaru-kun had nodded then, placed his hand upon Shippō-kun's head, and said that if Shippō-kun wanted an older brother, then of course he was his older brother, since Kagome was very yōkai for a ningen, and was adopting him as was proper. Sesshōmaru-kun had also informed Shippō-kun that his otō-san would be very happy to have Shippō-kun for a son; his father, after all, had taught Kagome how to be kitsune. She hadn't actually told him that, but her Sesshōmaru-kun was oh so clever and had accurately divined that not only had Toga taught Kagome how to be kitsune, but fully intended for her to adopt Shippō and to take him as another son. And because Kagome had so wisely introduced Sesshōmaru-kun as his older brother, he felt honoured to have a new younger brother and be trusted with him, rather than upset that he had yet another unwanted sibling.
Overall, Kagome had been inordinately pleased with how this situation was handled, and thanked the Kami for their wisdom and generosity; whether or not they were directly aiding her quest, they had given her the qualities necessary for it, and she was beyond grateful.
Miroku was not only hilarious, but much older than his age just as Kagome was, knew deep suffering, was genuinely powerful and talented, even without his kazaana, and was exactly what she needed. Kagome had always wanted an older brother, and after informing the lecherous monk of her betrothal, he immediately became much more respectful in his actions towards her, as her empathy had told her he would. Miroku did not seriously mean any of his advances, after all, and would never even think to touch one who was promised to another, even if that promise was unwilling; considering that Kagome was obviously blindingly in love with Toga, he would be beyond glad to have an excuse not to flirt with her.
Especially when Kagome had told him an edited version of her own story, the story of the Shikon beyond what he knew of it, how it had been manipulating her life to make it miserable, and that she desperately needed someone in her life who knew what it was like to have something all-encompassing and wholly negative hanging over their head. She might not have been hounded by death her entire life, but disaster and misery were nearly as bad, and immediately affixed her in a position of a sibling whom he could not only advise, but confide in and commiserate with.
The Very Important Question she had to ask him only further cemented herself into that strange, mixed position, late one evening a couple days after he joined their forming group. "Um, Miroku-ni? This Kagome has a… Well… Okay, this Kagome desperately needs some adult advice on something to do with her betrothed. This Kagome is not insinuating anything; she is fully aware that despite your actions you are truly honourable and are waiting for the right person… But you were also raised wisely and are male, plus might have some good advice on… Well, logistics."
He raised his eyebrows at her and patted the ground next to him, leading her to plop down and recline against the log he was currently using as a backrest. "Go on, Kagome-chan. I will help you as best as I can, and you know I will not judge you for your questions or actions; it is not my place."
Her adopted ani-san was vaguely aware of the situation; in fact he was already aware about the fact that Toga would be travelling with them in a smaller version of his true form, and had advised her that yes, she should tell Shippō-kun – only once Toga had actually joined them, so that he did not accidentally give the secret away due to his excitement. That had actually confused Miroku-ni somewhat, until she explained the genetic imperative that adult kitsune had, and that because their bodies were designed in such a manner, young kitsune responded to any adult kitsune in such a manner once orphaned, no matter how much they still loved and missed their original parents. Kagome might not have actually been kitsune, but she acted kitsune, so he responded accordingly, and because Toga had taught her her actions and mannerisms, he was immediately accepted as being as good as kitsune, just like her.
Miroku-ni had been impressed with his new knowledge. Still, now wasn't the time to think about it. "Okay so… You know my katana, Raimei? Whilst wearing it, Toga can become solid; fully so. It is not his weapon, though – it is mine, and he is not supposed to be interfering in my quest by defeating Naraku for us – so he cannot wear it constantly. The really important thing for you to pretty much always keep in mind, ani-san, is that this Kagome was raised yōkai. My actions, opinions, attitudes, and outlook have been forever coloured because of that, and due to its position as the vessel of the Shikon, my body is not even truly ningen any more; it is an anomaly."
He nodded at that, gesturing for her to continue, and she steeled herself. It wasn't even embarrassing, it was just, well… A little painful. "I can hardly bear being apart from Toga right now. My entire being is constantly in pain from the lack of my alpha's presence with me, and despite that we still meet in my dreams at night, that is nowhere near enough contact for one who has been almost constantly around her soul-mate for pretty much the entirety of her life. Until we found out about the machinations of the Shikon that are preventing it, Toga had been going to mate me as soon as he had absorbed his skeleton. We can't be mated – bound to each other – until he is fully regenerated, even though we wish to be. However…"
The monk was wise, intelligent, and kind – he understood her thought, followed it through, and did not force her to say it. "You can be intimate before you mate, as you are yōkai, and only the fact that he has to be wearing Raimei prevents it from being a reasonable expectation."
Air left her lungs in a whoosh, and she nodded, "Exactly! I mean, he could just… keep his kimono and obi on, but we are inu, body contact is necessary with intimacy. It would be an unsatisfying experience for the both of us if he had to remain clothed, but I can't think of a way other than that, considering Raimei's necessity."
Oh, but the Kami loved her, because her new ani-san was exceedingly clever! "Then have him use his sash to secure the blade to his back. That will also keep it from getting in the way whilst you are being intimate."
Kagome immediately glomped Miroku-ni and thanked him profusely, kissing his cheek affectionately. "Oh you are just the best, Miroku-ni! Yes, I knew you could help me with this! Thank you so very much. This Kagome will be informing her betrothed that it was her ani-san who made it possible for us to be with each other intimately before we are able to mate. He will absolutely grant you a boon – although, this Kagome would like to grant you a boon as well… Kind of."
He looked intrigued at that and inclined his head with a gentle smile, "Go on, what do you wish to give me?"
"The ability to talk to yōkai in beast forms. You are plenty strong enough for it, it is only a lack of the right kind of training that is preventing you from being able to talk to telepathic animals and beast yōkai. This Kagome knows how to open the proper channels that make it possible without training, however. This would grant her ani-san the ability to talk to his imōto-chan's betrothed, as well as creatures such as most crows and ravens, predators, rodents, and reptiles; lesser tanuki and kitsune; nekomata and other greater yōkai without humanoid forms; and humanoid beast yōkai in their true forms, if they have beast true forms."
His violet eyes widened and deepened with pleasure as he smiled at her, "I would love for you to do that, Kagome-chan! I have always believed that yōkai are as much to be protected as they are to be defended from – in fact I grew up around tanuki, my best friend's name is Hachi."
Kagome's eyes widened upon hearing the name of his best friend and she laughed in delight. Tanuki living within a specific area did not ever share names unless one of them died or moved away, and in that case the next tanuki to be born in that area with the gender of the tanuki who had left was given their name. Despite being comparatively low-level even when they were able to gain an anthropomorphic form and speak Nihongo, tanuki were incredibly long-lived, and her own beloved Hachi-kun told her he'd known her from his past, back when he lived where Miroku-ni had told her he came from. "I grew up with Hachi-kun! He has moved from where you were raised to the lands around the shrine where I grew up, and frequently aided me in getting lost for my navigation lessons when I was in his part of the forest. I swear to you, Miroku-ni, we will go visit where you grew up and go visit your dearest friend at some point during our travels together."
Her ani-san looked very surprised at her response, before chuckling lowly, "It seems you are blessed, Kagome-chan, to meet some of your dear friends through your new friends."
She nodded solemnly to him, quietly informing her newest pack member, "Amaterasu-Ō-Mi-Kami-sama, Ame-no-Uzume-sama, Hachiman-sama, Inari Ōkami-sama, Omoikane-sama, and Susanoo-no-Mikoto-sama have all at one point or another directly interfered in my life or blessed me. Amaterasu-Ō-Mi-Kami-sama and Omoikane-sama were directly responsible for Toga being pulled from the world of the dead a millennium before he was to regenerate and convinced Toga that his interference in my life would not change me from being kind, loving, and accepting, or change the depth of my temper and determination. Ame-no-Uzume-sama persuaded him similarly that changing the world by changing how I was raised would not cause harm.
"Hachiman-sama blessed my quest when I was thirteen years of age, Inari Ōkami-sama blessed me directly for returning a lost kitsune kit to its family – and for adopting Shippō-kun, although I was not aware of that that the time – when I was eight, and a moon before I made my initial trip through the well Susanoo-no-Mikoto-sama blessed me for agreeing, with the full knowledge that I would have to endure allowing my plans to be twisted and brought about in possibly cruel ways, to control the chaos of the Shikon by continuing to contain it rather than wishing it out of existence. He approves of chaos, you see, but only controlled chaos, chaos within limits. The Shikon has nothing limiting it currently, and until it is contained inside my body with my full knowledge and acceptance – as the first time around I had no choice – I cannot control how it uses its power."
Miroku-ni looked more thoughtful than he did shocked, before he quietly, seriously asked of her, "Kagome-chan, why did you not tell me that the Shikon caused your death in your prior existence?"
Oh, shit. Well, she hadn't intended to keep it from him… She just… Kagome whispered softly, so that in case Shippō-kun was still awake (he probably wasn't, but he was thoroughly kitsune, incredibly intelligent, strong, talented, and his senses were probably almost as enhanced as hers were; so if he was, she had to make sure he did not find this out) he wouldn't be able to hear her. "Because Yasha was directly responsible for my death in my previous life. You see how he treats me… It was worse the first time around, I was completely unaware of anything, and fell in love with him… The Shikon separated us for three years before I was allowed to return, he married me and settled down with me… and then after twelve years, met his soul-mate and abandoned me. I… I willed myself to death, because he had me convinced that nobody else could really love me for myself, and had separated me from all of my other loved ones."
Her ani-san pulled her into his lap and held her close as she closed her eyes and controlled her breathing carefully. Fuck, she wanted Toga, but she was so glad that the Kami had given her an older brother who could comfort her. "The only reason things are working out for me right now is because the Shikon is too busy enjoying its new power and seeding chaos that it has forgotten Toga and me."
He was, reasonably, confused at part of what she said, "Toga? In what way was your betrothed punished – well, apart from having to wait to mate you? From what you told me it seemed that he was actually given quite an advantage."
"Unless he is wearing Raimei – and now, in his natural form – he has every sense available to him… Excepting touch. He went through the majority of my life being able to hold me, touch me, comfort me, tease me… and not being able to feel a single damn bit of it."
Miroku-ni winced at that and sighed softly, "Truly, that jewel is vile and cruel and needs to be taken care of. I am sad that it must be you who has to contain it, but also glad because you are ideal for the job – large-hearted, kind, determined, and just ambitious enough to make the world a better place without letting greed for power overcome you."
She smiled in thanks and rested her head on his shoulder, just sitting in the night with him for a time. It was later in the year, and despite the darkness, not all that late, unlike it would be if it were summer time. They would go to their respective bedrolls soon; for now they could just enjoy the comfort that only siblings could give.
Sango really did not have a choice of joining Kagome's pack once she saw the taijiya's travelling companion – she was going to kill Toga for not warning her!
"Kirara! Oh, and here Toga had me thinking that I was just going to be missing you dreadfully this entire time and you're right here! I'm Kagome, and no I am not Midoriko's reincarnation – or Kikyō's – but that vile Shikon was housed in my body until I fell through a well and ended up in this place. It got shattered and thus, it is my duty to complete it and pull it back into containment. You and your taijiya friend absolutely must join me, we can work far better together than separately, and I could use another friend who knows how it feels to be both female and a warrior – we are so rare in this time."
Kagome knew that the other girl was a taijiya because of her yōkai bone hiraikotsu – it was pretty blatant. Also blatant was the complete and utter stunned shock on her face, especially when Kirara changed to her full size, walked up to Kagome, and sat in front of her, her body – tails included – completely still. "You know this Kirara, Kagome? From when? Obviously some time in the future, but how far did that vile thing get sent before it was dragged back here?"
"Five hundred years from now, Kirara. Only kind of, though. See, the thing is, this is actually my second time doing this quest. The first time the Shikon punished me so badly that it ended in my death. The Kami were most displeased with this, considering that I had rid the world of its tainted, twisted desires, and managed to get rid of Naraku as well, and decided to pull in the one person who could fix things so that they did not turn out the same way again. So, because the Kami are generally displeased with the state of the era I came from, as well as the current existence of the Shikon, I am destined to shape the world we live in in such a way as to change the future. Where I came from split off into a different world entirely the moment I was dragged into the well by the centipede yōkai. Those with close ties to myself and my betrothed will simply regain their memories of the previous world upon reaching the time I ceased visiting it."
Kirara made a thoughtful noise, and her companion spoke up, "Um; you can talk to her? I thought lesser yōkai with fully beast forms couldn't really speak?"
Lesser yōkai?! Really? What the hell kind of education did taijiya get nowadays?! "Nekomata, despite not having a humanoid form, are incredibly high-level greater yōkai, taijiya-san. They can communicate telepathically with anyone who has enough power and training; or anyone who has been opened up to telepathy by a miko, monk, priest, or priestess with sufficient power. My ani-san Miroku is a monk who had the power but not the training, but I opened him up, so Kirara will have three people in my group she can speak to, because my son Shippō-kun is a kitsune; yōkai can all speak to their counterparts that do not have humanoid forms or anthropomorphic forms, no matter their age."
She continued, "Furthermore, many lesser yōkai unable to speak ningen languages aloud can speak both in their beast language and telepathically; it's a weird sort of thing because they are speaking their language, not Nihongo; but the mind translates the meaning correctly anyway. This Kagome would gladly open you up so that you will be able to speak to your dear friend and companion, taijiya-san, assuming you would trust her with such a thing. I am a miko; despite not wearing the traditional miko garb."
The taijiya woman blinked, and when Kirara turned back to her and pressed against her side, gave a wry little chuckle, "Well, first off, my name is Sango, Kagome-san, and Kirara seems to desperately desire this, so I will allow it; thank you for offering."
Kagome walked over and placed a hand on Sango's forehead, sliding her reiki and miko-ki into Sango's mind, seeking out the spot that controlled the ability to understand telepathic speech, opening it up, and soothing the opening so that it would not be overwhelming or painful for her newest travel companion. When she was finished, she smiled, "There. You will be able to speak to pretty much any beast yōkai no matter their form, now, and even some intelligent animals capable of telepathy from exposure to specialised ki – yōki and spiritual ki – for the majority of their lives, which is very, very many in this era. When my betrothed joins us in his true form – he cannot take his humanoid form at the moment, because he is not allowed to interfere in my quest – you will be able to speak to him.
"Everyone excepting my hanyō companion will have this ability, because he isn't to know that the inu joining us is my betrothed; my betrothed is his father, and he is so mixed up and torn between so many emotions right now that his appearance as his father would ruin his mental capacity at the moment. He doesn't even really know that I am betrothed right now, because he believes me to be someone else, and the knowledge would tear him apart – I am telling you this all right from the start so that you are aware of the situation as most everyone else currently involved is. Yasha will eventually be told the truth, but not until his feelings for this Kagome have naturally become far more platonic and familial than they are currently."
Sango-san seemed to consider that carefully, before nodding firmly. "I can handle that. Kirara says you are out to get rid of Naraku, and I am as well – Kirara says we are destined to travel together, which I honestly don't care about, but I can talk to my best friend, now, so I owe you a debt. Besides, as you mentioned earlier, it will be nice to speak with and be around another strong female. What weapons do you use?"
She smiled and responded, "Longbow, hunting bow, katana, wakizashi, and daggers. My bows and swords are Fangs, my daggers are yōkai bone with self-replenishing yōki that repels illness, rot, and poison from anything they are inserted into; although they do kill as cleanly as my swords and arrows do."
The taijiya smirked and hummed in approval, "Very nice; daggers mainly for hunting and food preparation, but you can still defend yourself with them – it is always good to have backup weapons. I keep a dagger hidden in my obi as well, for emergencies. I do have a question though – you are a miko, right? How can you use Fangs? I thought reiryoku and hōriki naturally rebelled against yōki?"
Kagome settled herself in for a good, thorough explanation of how ki worked as they walked towards where the others were when Kagome had ran off, having felt Kirara's presence and ordered them all to stay right there and wait or you will regret it. "Well first off, you must understand that with any type of ki, the most important thing is intent. I can use my reiki to do far, far more things than most people think can be done – it almost borders on magic, although it isn't, I just learned how to channel my energy the proper way, the yōkai way, which strengthens and enhances control of your ki. Anyway, even those with reiryoku and hōriki can, if they will it, make their energy only affect yōki that they wish to be affected, forcing it to avoid any other sort of yōki. However, I do not have reiryoku; my purification ki was gifted to me by the Shikon – a leftover from Midoriko trying to grant the person who is protecting it some manner of defence. I call it miko-ki because I was just a child when I named it and it is an apt enough description – I would not be a miko without this ki."
Her answer was designed to make Kirara ask for her to blow Sango-san's mind, and the nekomata happily obliged, asking them both, "And what would be the difference between the yōkai way and the ningen way?"
"Ningen grab their energy and shove it out of their body, which forces their inherent reiki to actually work against their holy ki – their reiki resides in the whole of their bodies, after all, so pushing reiryoku or hōriki out of their body is pushing it against their reiki. Yōkai channel their yōki through their body – allowing it to naturally and easily flow through their bones and muscles, into their veins, into their very blood, and then they push it up through their skin. At which point it has been thoroughly intermixed with their reiki – which, yes, yōkai have as well; all beings in existence have reiki – and so it has not only been magnified, but it has been stabilised and centred, settling into their body in such a way so that the energy is noticeably strengthened.
"When I taught my ani-san this, he attempted it, and to his amazement found that he could hold his barrier for twice as long as he previously could, only on the first try – not to mention he was able to make a body-barrier instead of only a spherical barrier, which he had not even known was possible. In addition to all of this, the very land we walk upon; grass, plants, trees, all of it, have their own ki that we simply call earth-ki. It can easily be used to help sustain inherent ki sources and re-energise those who are using their ki for long periods of time – or even make it so that they do not need to use their own inherent ki whatsoever. Any being can use this ki, even if they have no additional ki beyond reiki. Yōkai learn how to use earth-ki as soon as they are able to be taught in any way whatsoever – I learned how to use earth-ki before my reiki or miko-ki, by a significant amount of time, because it magnifies the eventual developed amount of reiki and other ki when exposed to earth-ki from a young age, as its very nature is nurturing.
"Once upon a time, those of us who could protect and defend against yōkai actually worked alongside yōkai to help deepen the protection and defence of both ningen and yōkai against malevolent beings and those lesser yōkai that are like unto rabid animals. In fact, Kirara, you might be highly pleased to know that my eldest son is none other than Sesshōmaru, Lord of the Western Lands, and he is strongly allied with myself and my pack in general – as an entity, not as its separate components, most unfortunately Inuyasha attempts to fight him every time he comes around."
"You mean that your betrothed is the Inu no Taishō? Well! This Kirara is most pleased to be favoured by someone so exalted; if he actively chose you for his proper mate, then you would be the first person he has ever become so intrigued by. Neither Satori-sama, the previous Lady of the West, nor Izayoi, the mother of your other step-son, were really people that Toga loved outside of the times they were holding his sons."
Kagome smiled softly, playing with a strand of her hair, "Well, he wasn't given much choice in the matter, considering the Kami tugged on my strongest soul-bond and it happened to drop Toga right into their laps – only to find out that the soul-bond to me was his only soul-bond. Yes, he fell for me on his own, but without the soul-bond tying us together as soul-mates he probably would not have found me so attractive when he watched my previous adventures the first and second time around."
Unbeknownst to her, Sango and Kirara exchanged a few comments between themselves about how she was humble and why it was a good thing for one so obviously a leader. Especially someone who had a far more glorious destiny than she seemed to realise – that humility would do the entire world in good stead, and was no doubt one reason why she had captured the attention of the Inu no Taishō himself.
Meanwhile, Kagome was smiling softly as she led her newest companions to her group, unaware of and uncaring of how much she had changed the future already just for the initiative she had taken in creating her group and settling people into their positions rather than allowing it to form by chance. Oh! "Oh, Sango-san! You need to be aware of something. My ani-san is very wise and very wonderful, but he is also a complete lecher. Please feel free to punish him as you see fit for his wandering hands, but please also forgive him and understand why he does such things – he lives with death quite literally in the palm of his hand, and takes pleasure in life where he can find it, despite that his pleasure is not quite acceptable. He does not mean his advances; you will know if he is serious about pursuing you because he will lessen them or even stop altogether – at least towards the person he is interested in – so take him with a grain of salt and do not hate him for how he was raised, please."
Sango was nonplussed at that, but she ended up laughing, warning Kagome that her monk brother might find himself facing her hiraikotsu far more often than her palms.
Amaterasu smiled down, eagerly looking forward to what other changes would be happening in this journey.
Translations:
Ani-san – older brother in a respectful tone due to the -san rather than the more affectionate -chan.
Otō-san – father.
Similarly okā-san is mother, imōto (-chan) is little sister, ane (-san or -chan) is older sister (respectfully or affectionately), and otōto (-kun) is younger brother. Aniki also means older brother and ane-ue also means older sister.
Taijiya – yōkai slayer/hunter
Hiraikotsu – literally "flying bone", basically a bone boomerang.
Nihongo – Japanese as in the language. For Japanese as in the culture the word is Nihonjin, for Japanese as in Japanese person the word is hōjin, which literally translates to "fellow countryman/men".