A/N: You know how sometimes you get really annoyed because the filler seems to drag on forever and you want the story to go somewhere, and while it's wonderful to just have all these Lifetime Hallmark Moments that just make you feel mushy and warm and fuzzy inside, you kinda also wanna see some swashbuckling action and a few good stabbings or something Exciting that Doesn't make you roll your eyes and gag after a heavy doze?
Yeah, me too. But unfortunately, I write like an asshole, so you'll have to deal with it. There's a long series and a lot of character development happens in the early parts so I'll try to post them fast enough to not make the wait unbearable. But bear with me, there Is a point in all of this. You just haven't seen it yet...XD
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Sesshoumaru and Kagura had taken a long break after about seven hours, just laying next to each other, feeling the closeness of each other, their hot breaths caressing each other's skin, their warmth pooling in a tiny pocket of heat in the very small space between their bodies...
Taking in a deep breath, Sesshoumaru sighed in true contentment, curling one strong arm ever so gently around her, his elbow right about at the bottom of her ribcage while his hand reached up to tease one of her nipples softly.
"Sesshoumaru," Kagura still wasn't sure if this was real, "how is it that I have this body, which looks so close to identical to the one that was destroyed by Naraku?"
Sesshoumaru paused, opening his eyes fully, propping himself up on his elbow to look at her as she half-rolled to get a good look at his face.
"I'm actually not precisely sure how this new body of yours was created. What I do know is that when I headed down the Meidou Path that led to you, a Meidou Hound told me that I could bring you back if I had a suitable body, and that the sacred cow was watching. The three-eyed cow you may or may not have noticed back there, she can project her visions so that others can see, and so they knew something had to be figured out. Shippou mentioned using illusions and algae and..." here he took a slight sniff, "spices, herbs, and well," he smiled widely, "it's uniquely You. Not Naraku. I'm glad he thought of the little differences like the spider mark too though."
"So...so you didn't Enter the Netherworld Knowing that you could save me, then?"
Sesshoumaru blinked. He wasn't sure why she was asking this, but he would do his best to answer.
"I didn't know I could save you until I had done it," he replied quietly, "but that's not your real question, is it, Kagura? In truth, these past ten years, I thought I had no choice but to accept your death. It wasn't until Tenseiga reacted to the Crystal that I learned I might be able to bring back someone long-dead. And Tenseiga insisted that I try. At first, I was so used to trying to...trying to forget...that I didn't want to admit it to myself. I didn't want to hope, Kagura...because if I had been wrong, it would be like losing you all over again," he admitted, and he turned his head as if ashamed-
But Kagura reached up and put her hand on his face, gently turning him back to look at her own eyes, full of tears that were not yet spilled but crested in tiny pools on her lower eyelids.
"You risked everything to save me, then. You didn't even know if you would ever return, and yet you came for me?"
Sesshoumaru smiled, then blinked at her. What surprised him was that when he blinked, tears fell from his eyes onto her face. He hadn't even realized that he'd had tears in his own eyes.
They kissed again, and this was more of an emotionally sensual moment than anything else, not the kind of frenzied passion of lovers wanting to cavort in the bed, but a kiss of long-lost hearts brought out from the dark into light.
"Should we go back to all the others?" she asked almost wistfully when they were done kissing, and Sesshoumaru let out a little laugh and shifted himself slightly.
"So eager to leave me already? I must be intolerably boorish," he teased, running his hands slowly along her thigh.
"Oh, you mistake my question for desire. I was hoping you'd say no," she said honestly, delighted as she curled and contorted herself to fit her body snugly against his.
Another twelve hours or so, though, and they finally decided they would indeed return to the group of friends. Much fun as they'd had, they couldn't very well stay in the cozy little corner of the maze forever.
Sesshoumaru led them out, being that he was the one who remembered where to go, and with the blanket and his fluff still being his only coverings, he paused at the maze exit to glance at the wind chimes, then snorted in amusement.
"Oh, hey, you're finally back," Shippou chuckled, gesturing towards the fire, "and just in time, the roast pheasants won't take much longer to cook, and there's some fish and crabs just starting. Even a few vegetables if you like."
Kagura blushed as her brand-new stomach demanded it's first meal be given immediately, upon reacting to the signals her nose was sending to it.
But before she could really do anything else at all, a snarky comment from the side caught her in a conversation.
"Oi, Kagura," Inuyasha began coolly, although there was just a tiny hint of a smile on his face that foreshadowed some playful mischief, "I've gotta tell ya, I'm a little disappointed. How could you just let your Wife walk around without any clothes on? Can't you Control your own Dog?"
Kagura's eyes bulged as if she'd seen the moon swallow a star. But the comments weren't Really meant for her.
Sesshoumaru chuckled and tilted his head slightly, highly amused by his younger brother's poke. He knew it was all fun and games for the hanyou, Inuyasha's own way of showing his approval by teasing with such familiarity.
Kagura, having just barely noticed Sesshoumaru's amusement, registered something swiftly in her mind, and before it was too late for recovery, she quickly composed herself and fired off a witty retort.
"Oh? Well perhaps that would appease you, Inuyasha, but I have no qualms with the current state of his undress. In fact I rather enjoy seeing him naked. There's nobody else for me to worry about here either. So tell me, what do I have to gain from making him wear clothes, hmm?"
Inuyasha turned bright red and tried to stammer out a reply.
"Uh, w-well I, that is..." he faltered, sighed, and hung his head in exaggerated defeat, "okay, you got a point."
Toutousai, Myouga, Shippou, Maku, Saitou, Moumou, and Ah-Un all made appreciably entertained noises like chuckles or chuffs of what amounted to laughter, and Sesshoumaru was absolutely glowing with joy and pride.
And he didn't seem to mind being called Kagura's wife at all, Inuyasha noticed somewhere in the back of his mind. It was enough to make him smile underneath all that embarrassment from Kagura's clever rebuttal.
"Speaking of, though, Maku actually did find you some clothes," Shippou prompted, and said nervous foxling gingerly approached Sesshoumaru with the bundle, growing a little fearful despite the joviality of the situation.
"I uh, I hope you like it," Maku said with a gulp as he held up the bundle, "it's, ah, well it's made with very nice cloth and a professional tailored cut, only the fabric design is a little...unorthodox. I think it's not so bad though, I mean, at least with you wearing it, I think it'll look great, just great!"
Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow, more because of the fox's fear than because of the potential disaster his new outfit could be, but of course that was misinterpreted by Maku, who was now sweating as he awaited the reveal.
Feeling just a bit mischievous himself, Sesshoumaru opened the bundle very, very slowly, carefully untying the bow and unfolding the extra long sash that had been used to wrap the cloth, then laying out the flaps just one corner at a time...
The others all noticed this deliberation and snickered. Sesshoumaru was definitely in a good mood, so even if the clothes were a complete fashion foul, the fox would survive his punishment.
Kagura giggled as she watched all of this, having never imagined Sesshoumaru could be so funny, and with so little effort. This was more magical than she had ever dreamed in the time she'd been alive before.
Slowly, the plain covering of the cloth bundle made way to reveal little hints of the outfit beneath. Slowly, the traditional white undergarments were unfolded from the main garment beneath. Slowly, the mystery of the fabric's questionable design became revealed.
Wow, Sesshoumaru thought. He wasn't kidding. Not Everyone could pull off This Look...
But I Like It.
The main color of the silky pants was a dusty whitish-silver with a soft sheen, a color that very nearly matched his hair color. The top, however, was mostly a very pale pink, near white but not quite, with elongated sleeves. They weren't quite like the feminine sleeves he'd had before, but they were longer and of a more refined and elegant cut than the suikan style of Inuyasha's Fire-Rat Robe, which suited Sesshoumaru perfectly.
Oh, that wasn't all, though. This was actually a very highly decorated and themed outfit, the colors accentuated the design. From the base of one leg and all the way up the pants, and then along the shirt in a way intended to match up when worn togther, was an artistic black and silver relief-silhouette of a windswept cherry tree, whose branches extended along the chest and both arms. Pink petals just a few shades darker than the background of the top cascaded along the entire outfit, and the black and silver sash that was made to match the tree-bark design was also flecked with the same sakura petals.
"Hey, that's actually not too bad, at least not for you," Inuyasha commented, and Sesshoumaru smiled.
"Indeed. I like it," he agreed, then looked down at the foxling, and with an emphasized nod of his head, "Thank you, Maku. I appreciate that you had the sense to use some good taste. I'd have hated to see what my brother would've had picked out for me," he added with a chuckle as he looked over at the hanyou, "considering his fashion sense for his entire life revolved around the theory that red is good for hiding blood."
"Hey, hey, you can't use that against me, it's my Armor! And it was an heirloom! It's all Dad's fault, I swear it."
"Fair point," Sesshoumaru smirked, slipping the clothes on so swiftly that it was almost like a magic trick, finding the new sash surprisingly nearly identical in length to his old one-they'd had a good eye for estimating it. Unbeknownst to everyone else, he'd also transferred all of his former-sleeve-pocket things from Mokomoko-sama to the new outfit's pockets at this time.
"See? Your Wife looks so pretty in those flowery outfits, Kagura," Inuyasha snickered, teasing his brother again.
"Oh, don't act so surprised, I'm sure your wife would look good in such a nice outfit too, if you ever had the kind of sensitivity and forethought to buy something for her, that is," Kagura replied seamlessly, which yet again made Inuyasha blush and cross his arms, not knowing how to reply to that.
"She's definitely better at this than you are, Inuyasha," Shippou giggled, though he knew Inuyasha wasn't actually trying to tease Kagura half as much as he was getting away with poking at his currently amicable brother.
Sesshoumaru grinned. He SO approved of Kagura's quick witty humor when it came to dealing with his brother. Could she possibly be any more perfect?
"I don't get it," Saitou whispered to Maku, "so far Lord Sesshoumaru hasn't even protested to Inuyasha referring to him as Kagura's wife!"
"They're brothers, don't even try to understand," Maku rolled his eyes, "and dogs besides that!"
"That's true," Saitou agreed, and they sighed and shook their heads.
"OW!" Kagura suddenly yipped, and Sesshoumaru bristled and cracked his knuckles, whirling around protectively-
She slapped the side of her neck, then blinked as she felt a squish and heard a little 'oohf' from her hand.
Sesshoumaru relaxed.
"The flea youkai?" she blinked at Myouga.
"Myouga, what gives?" Inuyasha scowled and crossed his arms, "You really are hopeless, old man."
"I was merely curious," Myouga protested weakly as he woozily staggered to his feet, "to see what her blood tasted like, since her body isn't ordinary. I meant no harm, honest!" he said the last as he turned and bowed towards her.
"Oh, yeah, I wanted to ask about that!" Kagura agreed, absently clenching her fist to tap her palm in remembrance of that thought, and inadvertantly squishing Myouga again as she did so. Then, realizing that, "Oops!" she gasped.
"Such indignity it is to be a flea," Myouga squeaked as he floated to the ground.
Sesshoumaru let out a noise of amusement.
"Oh, he's fine. The flea is well-adjusted to being squashed. Now tell us, Shippou," Sesshoumaru turned to look at the fox with an expression Shippou had never expected, "how Did you manage to craft a living body from...algae and spice?"
The expression, Shippou realized as he studied it, was probably best described as reverant curiousity. Admiration was something of a broad term that didn't quite fit here, but it was pretty close. It was, in essence, that he was Anticipating Admiration, but hadn't heard why yet.
"Uh, well actually, I asked one of the Myobu, the messenger foxes of Inari, and was granted the temporary power to craft a living body from the algae and herbs in his realm. I had to get the general shape and then use my illusions to finish off the details of the looks, which is how I was able to make sure there wasn't a spider mark. It wasn't really my own doing," Shippou blushed, for once trying to be modest.
However, for once Shippou deserved a lot of recognition, and Inuyasha wasn't about to let him pass it off. He raised an eyebrow and decided he'd wait a few more minutes, just to see if the fox would let it slip...
"The Myobu? Was it Kosusugi, or Akomachi?" Sesshoumaru asked.
Shippou wasn't the only one who was surprised that a dog would know anything about fox patrons. Everyone else was wearing similar shocked expressions of varying degrees as they looked at him.
"Uh, well now that you ask, I'm fairly certain it was Kosusugi, but I never asked and he never introduced himself. This Myobu used a male voice though, but of course for a fox diety that would be easy enough to change. His mouth didn't even move when he spoke actually, so I can't tell you for sure," Shippou said, then asked, "but Sesshoumaru, how do you know so much about them? I've hardly ever met anyone besides a fox or a priest who remembers the names of the original Myobu."
"I spent a lot of my younger years learning basic dispelling magics, at my Mother's behest. Some of my instructors were foxes."
"Oh. That makes sense," Shippou nodded.
"You must've paid a heavy price for such a power," Sesshoumaru said, his tone suddenly very quiet and serious, "Especially to trade a Myobu..."
There it was, Inuyasha thought. Now was when Shippou would take the chance and play it off like nothing, just before he went on and on and on about how he was willing to-
"Nah, I didn't lose a thing, honest," Shippou smiled innocently. Nothing about his demeanor suggested he would elaborate otherwise.
And he continued to say nothing. There was no 'well, except for...' or anything. It was just that.
Ah and Un each raised an eyebrow at each other, while Maku and Saitou also raised an eyebrow at each other. Even though the younger foxes hadn't seen it themselves, they knew better because they were foxes. Myouga and Toutousai noticed this and blinked at each other, then looked at Shippou. Inuyasha huffed and looked as if he were about to say something, but just when he was getting ready to open his mouth, Moumou mooed loudly and stepped forward.
This got everyone's attention, and she stretched out her nose and shook her thick neck a bit before blinking all three eyes as they lit up.
Shippou sighed as he realized what she was about to show them. No good deed can go unpunished, it seems...
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A bright ball of light began to appear, first as a pinprick, then the size of a fist, then expanding until it was the size of a house, and finally gaining shape and form as a massive pure white fox.
"You whose parents called you Seven Treasures," the Myobu looked directly at Shippou, and it's voice was not spoken through it's mouth, but rather simply emanated from it's being in a rumbling boom of noise, "you make the offering of one who desires a favor, a gift. Tell me what you desire, Shippou."
"I have a friend who's trying to save the soul of...of the woman he loves. Her soul is in the Netherworld, but he has a way to bring her back. The problem is, her body is gone, and we don't want to do something like what Urasue the Necromancer was doing with the clay bodies she created, and we don't want to go kill anyone to steal their body either. It was suggested that maybe a sufficient amount of living flesh, like the clumps Naraku had used when he was transforming himself while inside the barrier at Mount Hakurei, might be able to be molded into a body she could use without having to supplant with other souls, a truly living body that wouldn't require killing, or death of any kind really, because those clay bodies needed to be sustained by the souls of the dead...I was hoping that you'd be able to help us out with this. I really want to help my friend...he's done so much to deserve it. I just don't know how, not without your help, great Myobu," Shippou bowed his head with his sincere plea.
"Hmm," the Myobu noised thoughtfully, "I could even do better than just clumps of living flesh, Shippou, but it may cost you more than you wish to pay. Just how important is this to you? Just what would you give?"
"Great Myobu," Shippou spoke something that Ah-Un quite approved of, although the fact that it was a classical and almost ritual exchange of dialogue eluded Inuyasha, "before I give you an offer, I would ask what kind of payment you desire."
"Ah, a true fox," the Myobu smiled, nodding at Shippou.
Shippou straightened himself up a little bit, acknowledging the Myobu with a modest posture. It was still so weird to hear words as if they were spoken and yet not see the white fox's mouth open and close for them, yet the Myobu smiled and nodded and everything else.
"I appreciate the honor of the traditional question when a fox is offered a trade, though I clearly have no need for jewels or gold, for objects or substance. What I require for such a feat," the Myobu paused to draw himself up to an almost royal sitting posture, nose slightly up, chest puffed, tail curled just so, "is your houshi-no-tama."
"My...my houshi-no-tama?" Shippou's voice caught as he started, jerking up almost as if he'd been slapped.
"What's that?" Inuyasha asked, and Ah-Un chuffed at him, as if he should know better.
Hearing and seeing everything in this realm, the Myobu answered Inuyasha's question.
"Hanyou, do you not know of your friend's houshi-no-tama? It is the essence of a fox's life-force, a unique type of soul. Among all creatures, every fox has the special power to move their soul. This is how a fox youkai such as your friend Shippou can use his multiplication technique and then move his soul to any copy he chooses to become. Though it cannot be too far away, and most prefer to hide it on their person rather than a nearby object. The one who is able to steal a fox's houshi-no-tama will have complete dominion over his soul, which is why most never reveal it."
"Oh," was the only response Inuyasha could think of, but then as it dawned on him, "hey, wait, you mean to tell me you want his SOUL for a favor?! So he has to die for you to grant his wish?!"
"Not quite," the Myobu shook his head, "I only require the surrender of the houshi-no-tama, which will then bind him to my side as a servant. He will not die, nor lose his power, unless he so chooses to leave his houshi-no-tama and become an ordinary fox, to die an ordinary death, and I will not stop him from that."
Inuyasha was about to draw his sword in rage, but Shippou stopped him with a firm gesture of his arm.
"If you can create a living youkai body for her, one like the body she had...well," Shippou huffed, "a youkai body that looks just about the same and has the same powers, but smells different, where she can have a natural lifespan she would've had before, and she doesn't need to feed on souls or anything like that...if you can make that happen then I'll give you my houshi-no-tama," he said.
"Shippou, don't do it! Are you nuts?! Tell this asshole to back off and let's go figure out something else!"
"Inuyasha, please," Shippou lowered his head, "don't make this harder than it has to be. There's not enough time to figure out anything else. We have about two weeks. Not a year, not 'whenever the Jewel Shards become whole again' or an arbitrary 'however long it takes' situation. Weeks. Besides, to be even the servant of one of the Great Myobu, the messengers of the God Inari, the noblest of dieties among devout foxes, is an honor itself. There are thousands of foxes who would line up for the chance to pay this price, out of their own free will to serve. I can't pass up the bargain, Inuyasha. It's worth it to make Sesshoumaru happy. Think of it, Inuyasha. I'll find happiness in this kind of life and you know it. Sesshoumaru isn't so lucky. He needs this, more than anything. Sesshoumaru isn't the guy who can just go and find something to be joyful about every day. He tries, but we know better, don't we?"
Inuyasha was starting to cry.
"Dammit, Shippou," Inuyasha wiped his eyes, "why are you trying so hard to make him happy? He's gonna kill you for this, you know it. He's gonna fucking Kill You if you give this Myobu your soul. Why, Shippou?"
"Oh, I know he'll try," Shippou sniffed, "only he won't be able to, because the Myobu will be the only one who can do that. Even if he did, though, you know he'd just bring me back to life with Tenseiga. He can't stay that mad at me."
"Shut up," Inuyasha growled, trying to hide his tears, "just shut up, would you? Just stop and call it off, and we can go and, and find another mage maybe, or a-"
"Inuyasha, NO," Shippou finally said firmly, and before there could be further discussion with his friend, he turned his tear-filled eyes and looked at the Myobu with the only questions he had left. "Are you able to grant my wish, or is that beyond your power, Great Myobu?"
"It is but a simple task," the Myobu said.
"After my friend rescues her, will I get to see all my friends at least one more time to say goodbye?"
"That would be easy to arrange. I would take you to them myself."
Shippou didn't answer with words. Instead, reaching his hand as if to pull something out of his pocket, he instead drew his houshi-no-tama straight from his heart and held it out to the white fox before him.
Inuyasha broke down into sobs.
The Myobu reached out his paw, and the houshi-no-tama drifted up towards it. Hovering there for a minute, the Myobu paused as he examined the kitsune's very soul, then he smiled and lifted it into the air, and with it he lifted his head until Shippou's houshi-no-tama hovered a few feet directly above his nose.
And for the first time, the noise he made reflected in the parting of his lips.
The Myobu howled.
It was a howl unlike anything they'd ever heard, one that echoed in every note and every pitch inside and outside their skulls all at once, piercing and yet not painful, loud and yet not deafening, a sound that wrapped itself in and around their very souls.
In fact, quite literally in Shippou's case, for as the Myobu howled, a swirl of energy began to encompass Shippou's houshi-no-tama, and it grew larger, and brighter, and began to spin faster and faster, and crackled and fizzed and sizzled and hissed and popped and sparked with energy.
Even when observing it replayed through the projections of the sacred cow, the unearthly howl vibrated in ways that thrummed through their ears with strange sensations and told a thousand old tales.
This howl shook the realm and darkened the skies within for an entire seven minutes, and when the Myobu finished, he lowered the houshi-no-tama to his paw and held it before him again, studying it once more. It had expanded and then shrunk down again several times, and it's final size now was about four times larger than before. It retained all the interesting new properties of a ball of swirling streaks of blue-purple-green-black lightning instead of just a ball of bluish-greenish light.
"Catch," the Myobu smiled, tossing the houshi-no-tama back to Shippou.
Gasping as the houshi-no-tama hit him and re-entered his body, filling him with new power, Shippou was breathless and wracked with pain for a few seconds, then caught his breath and let out a heavy groan, his insides on fire.
"Breathe, and it will pass. Adjusting will be rough," the Myobu said calmly, and Shippou focused and breathed for a few minutes, and the sensations finally settled into a tolerable slight discomfort, a mild ache.
"What...what did you do? Was that a, a binding spell?" Shippou asked, coughing a bit.
"Binding? No, no, silly fox. I gave it back to you fair and square. Your houshi-no-tama is yours to keep, Shippou. I gave you the power to grant your own wish. Within my realm you will find a pool of algae, and when you gather it and imbue it with your fox magic, you'll be able to create this living body you so wish to craft. There's only one tiny little catch in this whole thing, one I'm sure any fox would appreciate," the Myobu smiled, revealing his trick.
"Oh no...what's that?" Shippou gulped, terrified about what had just happened to his soul.
"You wanted her to smell different than she did before. Tell me, Shippou, did she used to smell like algae?"
Shippou sweatdropped.
Inuyasha, relieved, and having just heard the clever white fox's final joke, fell down and laughed his ass off.
"I suppose that's a very small price to pay for the favor," Shippou said gracefully, truly overcome by gratitude as he bowed himself low with his head on the ground.
"Hmm, indeed," the Myobu chuckled. "You needn't think of it that way, though. Your willingness to sacrifice your own soul for the true love and happiness of your friend, the purity of your spirit...by virtue of your heartfelt desire you have earned that which you seek. There was no indecision in you, no fear of failure. You have faith in the fact that if you were to make this sacrifice, it would be worth it. You do not question whether it would be in vain. You gave me your houshi-no-tama freely because you give your friends your love freely. This is the very essence of Inari and of the white fox. This is the true path to acquiring the control over seireiki, spiritual power. This is what is required to craft the body you will make, and I have placed within your soul the guidance to do it. Go and collect the algae, you'll know what to do. As for the scent...you can probably mix in some herbs to sweeten her smell."
"I...I don't...th-thank you, Great Myobu!" Shippou said as tears of relief fell from his eyes.
"Yes, yes, now hurry, your friend will grow impatient," the white fox smiled.
?-?-?-?-?-?-?
As Moumou's projection flickered out, there was a stunned silence within the cavern. Inuyasha no longer had anything to say, Ah-Un wasn't usually very vocal anyhow, and everyone else was shocked.
Yet the one who was the most shocked was none other than Sesshoumaru himself. In his mind, he'd never fathomed that this young fox friend of his would have been willing to give up his soul and his freedom for what was, literally, a slim chance in Hell. Regardless of past experiences Shippou had with their impossible successes, the fact remained that even with such strong faith in him, the kitsune had handed over his soul in exchange for a false body, for a woman that he himself didn't romantially love, for a friend who ran off on a crazy mission in the Netherworld. Handed over his soul without any expectation of being saved from the fate of being soulbound to a Myobu. Which is nothing like waiting to be rescued, confident in your saviors. No, he made a different kind of surrender entirely. A permanent choice.
"Hey, wow, Shippou, you finally did it," Inuyasha chuckled, flicking his ears back nervously, "he's speechless."
"Oh gee, that was exactly what I wanted," Shippou rolled his eyes at the hanyou, "thanks, thanks for pointing that out to me, Inuyasha, because I couldn't tell."
Snapped out of his whirling thoughts that had caused a stupor as he heard his brother's words, Sesshoumaru felt his overwhelming emotions catching up to him again, but this time, he didn't even attempt to hinder their advance.
So when he suddenly dropped to his knees and touched his head to the floor at Shippou's feet, it was enough to make Inuyasha, Toutousai, Myouga, Moumou, Saitou, and Maku all fall over in shock. Even Ah-Un snorted and jerked both heads backwards almost as if literally struck with sheer disbelief.
Shippou would have probably also fallen over, but given the proximity and the position he was in, he just froze and sweatdropped, not sure what was going on. Well, okay, he wasn't Stupid, but he sure didn't know what to DO.
"Uh, I..."
"Thank you," was all the dog whispered, still keeping himself low.
"Oh my Dog this is so friggin' weird," Inuyasha mumbled weakly as he sat up and rubbed his eyes, blinking hard.
Kagura, the only one who hadn't seemed all that surprised, started to giggle and knelt next to Sesshoumaru, herself touching her head to the ground briefly before sitting back up on her heels and touching Sesshoumaru's shoulder.
"Shippou, I think he felt you deserved it, for what you were willing to do. I can agree with that, but clearly it makes you feel very awkward," she chuckled, and Sesshoumaru sat up, blinking at Shippou for a moment.
Oh, it DID make Shippou feel awkward. Well, that was...unexpected. Sesshoumaru had thought maybe Shippou would have enjoyed this particular gesture of gratitude. Especially given the fox's personality.
"Oh, I, well I figured out why, I just..." Shippou scratched his head nervously, "I'm not used to Sesshoumaru being grateful to me for anything, much less going and...and doing that. It's a little...a LOT unusual," he said.
Sesshoumaru tilted his head, then a small smile began to form on his face.
"Oh, I see," he said, and without further warning, he reached one arm over and dragged the fox into an embrace, with an added, "you must find this to be more appropriate," as he squished the fox tightly into his chest.
Shippou sighed in relief.
"Yeah, that's a Little less strange, coming from you."
"Well then I'll never bow myself to you again."
"Oh, well I didn't say-"
"I was making fun of you. Should you ever merit it again, I would-"
"No, please don't, it's too weird," Shippou hastily redacted.
"You could always bow to me instead!" Inuyasha piped up jokingly from the peanut gallery, recovered from his shock.
"Kagura, can you kill him for me?" Sesshoumaru asked with clear facetiousness.
"Oh, why of course I can, my dear," Kagura smiled and stood, waving her empty hand as if she had a fan.
"Aaww, what a good husband, already defending your wife from insult!" Inuyasha teased some more.
"Yes, I am clearly such an admirable husband that even those who have been husbands for a long time are now envying my redeeming qualities," Kagura declared airily, "and out of jealousy, they jest at my beautiful mate, knowing that they'll never match the two of us in charm. Now, as my Wife requests, I must kill you," she said, and with a giggle of mischief, she opened her empty palm as if there were something in her hand, blew across it towards Inuyasha, and then waved her hand back and forth towards him, saying, "Dance of Defeat Yourself!"
Inuyasha actually could appreciate that sense of humor. Laughing, he twirled around twice and obligingly fell over.
"Ah, oh no, she beat me!" he chuckled, flicking his ears back.
Ah snorted in amusement. Kagura's dances sure are effective, he thought with a chuff akin to laughter.
Quite, Un agreed, for she defeated Inuyasha with a single move, and both of their mouths were upturned in toothy dragon smiles.
A ripple of amusement chorused around the cave, and Sesshoumaru let go of the fox after lingering with one last very meaningful tight squeeze of the kitsune's shoulder, then returned his attentions to Kagura, unable to keep himself away from her for very long.
"Your dances sure are effective," he said with a subtle undertone of joy bubbling up in his voice, uncontainable as his happiness was right now as one arm pressed against her body and drew her closer to him. "You defeated Inuyasha with a single move."
"Anything for my dear husband," Kagura smiled and drew herself in even closer.
Sesshoumaru snorted and smirked at her.
"Hey, you're the husband, remember?" he chuckled, then added, "And already you're doing a fine job of taking care of your gorgeous helpless wife, so don't ruin it now."
Kagura started to laugh at him, and she stood on her tiptoes to give him a quick little kiss.
"Oh jeez, they're gonna be runnin' down the maze to get back to that room again," Inuyasha feigned aggravation, but it was pretty obvious that he was very happy for them, because a big dopey smile was on his face too.
"Rin is gonna have a field day with this," Shippou winked at the hanyou and elbowed his side gently.
Hearing that name made Sesshoumaru's mind flicker to another thought, and this one seemed to cause him just a little twinge of apprehension, though not necessarily in a bad way. This was going to be a surprise to Rin and Jaken, since this had all happened without any forewarning and without their presence.
"Hm?" Kagura blinked at him, not sure what had just cause that reaction, and he shook his head and reassured her with a look that held his smile dancing in the corners of his eyes.
"Rin has grown into a fine young woman, and she and Kohaku have been courting often lately. I'm sure she'll be very happy to see you. She always knew better, you know, better than even I did, when it came to feelings. Jaken will of course be...curmudgeonly. But that's his way. Just step on him, he'll shut up," the dog smiled, and she laughed.
"Rin and Kohaku! Now that one, I think is just adorable. And I don't think Jaken will despise me for too long."
"Jaken hates everyone forever. It's his way of showing love for someone who isn't Sesshoumaru," Shippou said.
"Yeah, he's gonna be especially jealous now that Sesshoumaru's got a new husband. Poor toad probably always had an eye for the job himself," Inuyasha flicked one ear towards the kitsune, who definitely approved of the sly add.
Sesshoumaru blushed as that thought grazed his consciousness, then shook his head to try and Dislodge that thought from his consciousness, which made Kagura laugh all the more. She was finding everything funny.
Yet all of these shenanigans had interrupted her new body's current priority, which was Food, and the loud grumbling of her stomach protested her dallying with such lamentations that she blushed a dark crimson.
Which made everyone else chuckle, of course, and they all set about getting the food ready. Of course Kagura got the best part of everything, and she devoured it as daintily as she could, her hunger suddenly ravenous beyond compare.
"Oi," she paused after she'd eaten two helpings of everything, blushing and trying to joke about herself, "I guess now I really know what it's like to eat as if you've never had food before."
"No worries, long as you're in the same area as Inuyasha you can never have the worst food manners," Shippou said.
"Keh!" Inuyasha flicked one ear, crossing his arms to display much more annoyance than he actually felt.
"So now what do we do with the Crystal?" Shippou finally and rather abruptly addressed the elephant in the room.
There was a long pause as that question hung in the air. Sesshoumaru silently stood and reached for Tenseiga, with just a slight pause as he realized it was not exactly as he'd left it, but he didn't bother trying to figure out who had sheathed it and laid it where it was. As his hand closed around the hilt of the sword, he closed his eyes and tried to feel out some kind of response. He tried to seek it out with his mind as he'd been able to in the Nether, but the connection seemed fainter, as it usually felt, which was more normal but also slightly depressing.
'Tenseiga?'
The response was faint, and barely formed into an intelligible thought.
Hard to...think in speech. Distant.
'Yes, you even sound far away.'
Soul...Nether. Easy there.
'What should I do with the Crystal of Souls?'
There was a pause.
Keep safe. Hide somewhere new.
This worded thought seemed to be a struggle for Tenseiga now that it was no longer inside the Netherworld, and it appeared to give up the attempt after that statement, falling into the quieter and more familiar feelings of simple color-thoughts and nudges of emotion.
That was alright, Sesshoumaru smiled. Tenseiga had only really 'spoken' to him like that when he was inside the Netherworld, and he presumed after what he'd learned about the sword that it was because of the obvious connection to that power. Being in the land of the living surely made the mental effort much more strenuous.
Looking to the side for a moment, Sesshoumaru used his Mokomoko-sama to pick up his armor and set down his sword for a moment to put it on, redoing the sash before slipping both his blades into their usual resting-spot at his side. Glancing down at his feet, he sighed and shook his head. He'd just have to go barefoot for now, which was going to look rather silly with all his other new fancy clothes and accoutrements. Next he tucked the Crystal of Souls once more into the safe nook between his armor and his chest, with a little bit of his fluff squishing in there to keep it a bit more secure as a precautionary measure.
"Tenseiga seems to think it needs to be hidden elsewhere, somewhere safer," Sesshoumaru finally spoke the answer to the fox's question that had prompted his actions, "although at the moment I'm not sure exactly where..."
His words trailed off as his eyes widened slightly, and about two seconds later, Inuyasha started to laugh.
"You didn't think you could hide it from Her, did you? I mean, if there's One person who was Guaranteed to find out about this, She would!" the hanyou started to snicker.
"Uh-oh," Toutousai and Myouga gulped and hid behind Moumou.
Shippou, Ah-Un, and Moumou all seemed amused. Maku and Saitou had suspicions but remained mostly in the dark. And Kagura was outright confused, not sure what was going on or why it was so funny to some and scary to others that this new and powerful aura was rapidly drawing near, navigating the maze with great speed and abandon, audibly crashing through a few walls rather than doubling back around them...
?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?
?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?
UH-OH! Who's this, I wonder? Now go ahead and wonder who that is for a little bit and take yourself a tiny break to think it over. Ponder, if you will, the existence of just how many people in Sesshoumaru's long life of right around a thousand years might decide to show up at just such a moment. I don't know if I made it obvious or not, it was obvious to me because I thought it and wrote it, but I've learned that I'm crazy and shouldn't expect others to think like I think they think I think all the time. I think.