Disclaimer: This story is based on "Inuyasha," copyrighted by Rumiko Takahashi. No infringement of copyright intended or implied.


To Meet Mother

Kagome slid down from Inuyasha's back. "What is this place?" she asked turning. A pond lay down the hill, its banks a riot of irises. A massive tree, its trunk greater in width than her own height dominated the grassy slope. "It's beautiful—oh." She stared at the lump of gray stone rising amid a tangle of grass and flowers. "What's that?"

"It's..." Kagome looked up sharply at the hesitant tone in Inuyasha's voice. Pink tinged his cheeks, and he was watching her with a mingling of apprehension and shy embarrassment. "It's my mother's grave," he whispered, left ear atilt. "I-I come here and talk to her. I wanted—I know she's not really here, I mean she died years ago, but I-I wanted to—introduce you to her. To—to show her, um, to show her the girl who likes me enough to—to leave her family and everything."

"Oh, Inuyasha, that's so sweet!" Kagome flung herself on the hanyo. "You have to introduce me to your mother—and tell me all about her!" She hugged him harder, then noticed an odd hardness inside his kimono. Pulling back, she pressed the lump. "What's this?"

"Oh." Inuyasha reached inside his kimono and removed a small, four-sided wind-chime bell, depending from a metal leaf, which was mounted a delicate, painted butterfly. "Miroku got this for me last year—it's a long story—and, well, I'd been thinking of bringing it here, but if I left it, I was afraid it'd disappear and..."

"I'm sure your mother will understand if it's just here for visits," Kagome murmured. She stood on tiptoe and gave him a quick kiss on his cheek. "Why don't you hang it on the tree, and then introduce me?"

Relaxing, smiling, he nodded.


Author's Note: This was written for the prompt "Windchime" for the "At First Tweak" LiveJournal community. It was originally posted on March 7, 2012. It won the contest. (1/4/2013)