Author's Note: Slight Spoilers for manga chapters 491 and 514, in reference to Inuyasha assisting his brother against certain enemies. Also slight spoiler for manga chapter 549, in reference to Naraku's comment about the brothers.
A Distant Promise – Mini-Chapter # 22
An awkward silence.
As lights and buildings flickered by through the windows of the car, Kagome fidgeted and tried to restrain herself from playing with the many controls and buttons in the vehicle. It was, she supposed, a very nice automobile. Not that she knew much about cars, but the sleek design and leather interior reeked of money. In fact, this might have been a very comfortable, enjoyable ride, had she not been so tense.
So far, Sesshoumaru had provided monosyllabic answers to everything she asked, and she couldn't help but wonder if she had somehow angered the stately youkai. In the past, the taiyoukai had never been friendly or conversational. But back then, there had been good reason for him to keep his distance. Inuyasha and his sibling had played a violent game of sibling rivalry. Each was willing to rescue the other, if the situation demanded it. But neither one ever admitted that his sibling was important. The half-brothers had remained eternally aloof and detached from one another.
For some reason, she had always assumed that their love-hate relationship would not survive the test of time. Eventually, she had assumed that one of the brothers would break down and start being civil to his only remaining family member. Miroku had commented several times that Sesshoumaru seemed to protect his little brother in life-or-death fights, and Inuyasha had leapt to his elder brother's defense several times, as well – most notably, when Sesshoumaru fought Shishinki and Magatsuhi. Clearly, the half-brothers liked each other well-enough to fight on each other's behalf. Heck, even Naraku had snidely described them as 'comrades.' So why was Sesshoumaru still acting so cold and unfeeling?
At first, she had been shocked to recognize the taiyoukai's features in a human form. Recalling what Shippo told her about demons disguising themselves as people, she had been pleasantly surprised to learn this camouflage did not actually change his appearance. The Lord of the West still looked just as regal as before – possibly even more so, in a modern suit and tie.
Next, she had been flattered and thrilled. Sesshoumaru traveled all the way to her family shrine, in order to meet her, and he had politely offered to drive hours and hours out of his way, just to have a chance to talk to her. What other explanation could there be? But now, after the pervading silence of the journey, she was not so sure anymore.
"I met your son," she announced, trying once more to lighten the mood, "He has been very well-raised. You must be very proud of him."
"Indeed," the taiyoukai replied, visibly tightening his grip on the steering wheel.
Kagome realized she had said the wrong thing, yet again. Honestly, the man was more prickly than a porcupine. Finally, her temper flared and she broke the strained, polite silence with one of her usual outbursts. "Okay, look. Do you have some kind of problem with me?" asked the miko, "Because if so, just say whatever is bothering you and get it off your chest. I can't take this anymore."
Pulling the vehicle to the side of the road, he switched off the engine and faced her, his face a solemn mask. She felt subtle wisps of youki curling angrily around her form in the passenger seat, and she squirmed uneasily, wondering what she had just gotten herself into.
"Satoshi is a very admirable young man," the dog-demon explained, as though she were a recalcitrant two-year old. "He may look like Inuyasha, and his age and maturity reflect that of… the Inuyasha that you first met, years ago. But Satoshi is nothing like his Uncle. He will not replace what you've lost, miko."
By this time, her eyes were wide with astonishment, and her right hand fluttered under her chin, betraying her unease. "What I lost…" she repeated back to him, "Wait, you think that…"
The accusation was so ridiculous that she wasn't sure whether to laugh or to cry. Did Sesshoumaru really think she was interested in his son? Wordlessly, she shook her head.
"You are merely toying with his affections, then?" growled an irate demon. As appalling as his original thought might have been, his current suspicion was even darker. Somehow, the idea that she might not like his boy was even more insulting than the idea that she did.
"No!" squeaked the priestess hastily, "You're crazy! Satoshi likes some girl in Europe."
The atmosphere lightened considerably, and his spiritual energy decreased, coiling tightly around him again where it belonged. Kagome discovered that she had skittered away from him during the exchange, and she was currently pressed unflatteringly against the car door. Smoothing out her skirt, she glared at the taiyoukai once more, for entertaining such absurd, demented notions in the first place.
But her irritation evaporated once she saw his expression. For the first time that evening, the ferocious demon-lord that she had known in years past was completely absent. Instead, he looked every inch the concerned parent. Her heart thawed toward him a little bit.
"Uh oh," she murmured, "Did you absolutely forbid him to see or speak to her, ever again?"
An unexpected flush of color crept its way across his cheeks, marking the space that stripes would have covered in his true form. "No," Sesshoumaru answered, with a rare smile that drew her gaze and held it fast. "I wanted to, but I have found that it doesn't work."
"Hehe!" laughed the priestess easily, "My mother told me not to climb the Goshinboku tree once… I broke my arm doing it, the next day."
Tension relieved, they drove on, and Kagome relaxed into the smooth cushions of her seat. It was a comfortable car, after all.
