"We want to go to the shrine," Megumi said, no, demanded, with his bag packed with what Satoru assumed to be toys, snacks, and maybe an extra pair of clothes. Who knew what ran through the mind of Megumi?
Satoru scoffed. He'd opted to sleep over at Megumi and Tsumiki's apartment last night because it was late by the time they left the Higurashi residence and because he was certain that Megumi would sneak back over to the shrine. Though truthfully, Satoru slept over at the apartment more often than not because the children needed someone watching them. He kept his apartment for obvious reasons.
"We're going regardless," Megumi announced, bending down to slide on his shoes. Tsumiki frowned, but slid on her coat and a pair of mittens.
Wonderful.
Even Tsumiki was following in Megumi's defiant behavior
"You can't just invite yourselves over," Satoru argued. "You sure you don't want to stay home, and I can call the babysitter?" Satoru was in too good of a mood last night to fire the woman and people make mistakes, so he figured he could give her another chance to prove herself.
"Kagome-san can be our new babysitter..." Megumi trailed off, scrunching his nose. "Nanny."
Nanny?
Satoru's eyebrows shot up behind his bandages. "You want her to be around full-time?"
"Shippo said he wants a dad, and we want a mom."
Satoru crossed his arms. That was the second time Megumi inferred Satoru was a father figure. When did that happen? What happened to the boy that demanded Satoru to keep his distance? "You said you wanted her as a nanny and now you want her as a mom? Which is it?" Not that Satoru did not have the money to afford a nanny, because he did, but there was also the matter if Kagome wanted to be a nanny.
"The nanny part is just a trick," Tsumiki answered, lowering her voice to a whisper. "We'll be on our best behavior and then she'll never want to leave."
"So don't get our way," Megumi commanded, puffing his chest out.
Unbelievable. The brats were trying to convince Kagome to be their mother by asking her to be their nanny first.
"What if I don't want Kagome?"
Megumi's lips twisted back in disgust. "No one asked what you wanted."
"Megumi," Tsumiki admonished. "Gojo-san is lying."
Satoru palmed his face and exhaled. What was going on? He was certain there was something in the hot chocolate last night. Some kind of concoction to turn sweet, always agreeable, never talked back, Tsumiki against him. "You, two, listen—"
"We need to get gifts!" Tsumiki exclaimed, bouncing up and down. "We can't spend Christmas together and not have gifts." They turned to Satoru with expectancy.
"I have work," he reminded them, but the two shrugged him off.
"You always have work. Take us to get gifts and then take us to the shrine."
"Did you even ask Kagome if she wants to be bothered with you?" Satoru was at his wit's end. Megumi was always a sassy child, but for Tsumiki to join in, left Satoru dumbfounded. Where had he gone wrong? Too many sweets? Too much screen time? Damn, it was probably the screen time. Shoko was always going on about the effects of it, though he had blown her off because who listens to someone that cheated their way through medical school?
Strangely, though, to Satoru's confusion, he felt a pang of regret fill his body and nestle deep in his heart at Megumi's words. Who else would do missions if not him? Of course, he could slack off like Tsukumo, but then what? Spend his day knowing that he could have taken a mission or two and hope no sorcerers died because he could not be bothered.
Megumi stared at him for a beat and then pointed at Satoru's pocket. "Call her." When Satoru took too long for Megumi's liking, he tried to breach infinity to retrieve the phone himself.
Satoru planted a hand on Megumi's head and kept him back. "Alright. Damn, I'll call her. Freaking gremlin." Satoru pulled out his phone and called Kagome. It was simply a coincidence that he had her number in his phone. It's not as though he was hoping to have another reason to call her. And it was not because of Megumi's words. And he only insisted on getting her number last night because he would need to retrieve those items from the shed eventually.
On the third ring, Kagome answered.
Satoru turned to the side. She sounded breathless, and his mind went to the gutter.
Damn it.
"Good morning, Satoru. Is everything okay?"
"Uh... everything is fine." He cleared his throat. "The brats... uh, Megumi and Tsumiki wanted to see you and Shippo today."
"Tell her we want to spend the night!"
"I'm sorry. What was that?" Kagome asked. "Thought Megumi said something."
"Oh, he's just talking to himself." Satoru shook his head. Megumi needed to cut it out. They were not spending the night.
"WE WANT TO SPEND THE NIGHT!"
"Oh, that's fine if it's fine with you," Kagome said. "Though I'm not at home yet. I'm out getting gifts for everyone."
"Even me?" Satoru joked as his fingers tightened around the phone.
"Sure, we could build a fort in the living room and camp out."
His throat went dry. Oh, he was just saying shit, but she answered sincerely.
"See, I told you Gojo-san likes her," Tsumiki half whispered behind him. "We should move with Plan B."
Satoru looked over his shoulder at that. Plan B? He turned his attention back to the conversation. "We need to get gifts as well... just let me know when you're home and I'll drop them off. I gotta work, but I'll be done tonight."
"HE WON'T GET DONE IN TIME!" Megumi shouted. Satoru turned and held a finger to his lips, but Megumi stared back defiantly.
"Oh? Is it something I can help with? It's with the curses, right?" Her voice was husky and far too sensual this early in the morning. "I don't mind, so you can enjoy the holiday. Unless you prefer to work alone?"
He wanted to work her. She teased him all night. Every time they touched one another, accidentally on her part, her energy flared, and he swore it was like getting a hit. He left the Higurashi residence frustrated and annoyed that he had to share her with everyone else.
Satoru coughed. "But what about the kids?"
"WE'LL STAY WITH GRANDMA!" Tsumiki shouted this time.
Satoru sucked in a breath. Perhaps he should have put Kagome on speaker. His eardrums were shot from all this yelling.
"I guess that's settled," Satoru said. "Sure, you can come along. I'm curious how you took out that special grade, anyway."
"Mmm okay," Kagome said. "I'll call you when I get back home." She ended the call, leaving Satoru with a strange churning in his gut.
He wanted to talk to her longer.
He wanted to end the call as quickly as it had started.
"Alright, you two," he said, sliding his phone back into his pocket. "We'll pick up some gifts and if Kagome isn't back by then, then you two can hang out in the car while I do some missions."
"That's fine. We need to wrap the gifts." Megumi reached for the doorknob. "Let's go before everything good is gone." Megumi paused. "Pick out a ring."
"Now hold on," Satoru huffed. "A ring? I am not—"
"Then I'll propose to Kagome-san, myself."
"Oi! Watch it."
"Megumi, that's Plan S," Tsumiki said, waving a finger at him. "We got to stick to the schedule like Shippo said."
"... What schedule?" Satoru asked, but the two ignored him and continued to converse with one another about how plans needed to be modified depending on the circumstances. "Oi! Don't ignore me." Satoru squished Megumi's spiked hair. "What schedule?"
"Don't worry about it. You don't know what a schedule is."
As much crap as Satoru received from his fellow sorcerers, no one ever took the time to compliment him on his patience. Truly, his ability to keep his control was something that should be studied. A master class. No one had more patience than him.
"Keep it up and I'll make you do your missions today," Satoru threatened, but they both knew it was an empty one. Part of Satoru's workload was taking on Megumi's missions. He'd complete the missions and pass the money to Megumi's account to sit there. The kid had several commas in his account, but Satoru never asked him or Tsumiki to pay for anything.
"I won't share the list of things Kagome-san likes then."
Satoru frowned. They had a list? Why didn't he get a list? "Let's go before I change my mind." Another lie, but the brats never called him out on it, instead they happily ran up a bill and left him to foot it. He instructed Ijichi to drive them to the closest shopping center and though Ijichi cried about freaking schedules, he did as he was told. Honestly, why was everyone so concerned about schedules today?
Ijichi's eyes grew two sizes when he saw the sheer number of boxes and bags they came out with. Satoru closed the trunk and blew out a breath. While he did not purchase a ring, much to Megumi's annoyance, he picked out a bracelet that was still thoughtful and far less romantic than what Megumi urged him to buy.
"You just met her yesterday," Satoru sighed. "Not every woman you meet is going to be your new mother."
"Uhhh..." Ijichi tried to get a word in, but the trio talked over him.
"Kagome-san isn't every woman." Megumi crossed his arms, looking more like a pouty hedgehog. Satoru shook his head and pulled his phone out, pretending to be busy. "You said you liked her."
"Those words did not come out of my mouth."
"Then why did you keep touching her last night?" Tsumiki asked. "And she touched you too! You don't like it when people touch you."
"Guys..."
"And you laughed at her corny jokes."
"They were pretty bad," Tsumiki agreed.
"Her jokes weren't bad."
"He also helped clean the dishes," Megumi pointed out. "Before he left to get you, he and Kagome-san went somewhere alone for a long time. InuYasha grumbled that Gojo-san was trying to—"
"ENOUGH!" Satoru pinched the bridge of his nose. Kami, that was the first time he had to yell at those two, but for fuck's sake. "Do not repeat what InuYasha said. I can only imagine what he had to say."
"... He just said you were trying to rut her or something."
Satoru choked. "I just said not to..." He sucked in a breath. Being a single parent was not easy. Which was bullshit, because Satoru was a genius, and everything came easy to him. Ijichi shot him a look from the driver's seat. "I wasn't trying to..." Satoru huffed. Okay, he was tempted. Sue him. Kagome was hot, witty, powerful, and somehow the nicest person he has met. Yeah, he would have loved to sleep with her, but that's not why he went to the shed with her.
"Gojo-san, were you trying to... ummm... were you trying to?"
"Spit it out, Ijichi, you're a grown man." Satoru scoffed. "No, I wasn't trying to do that." Now had he and Kagome been alone, like at his apartment, then hell yeah, he would have felt the waters and made a move. But last night was not the right time or place for him to hit on her... should he have hit on her?
"Is Kagome-san home yet? We're tired of being with you."
"Oi!" Satoru turned around in the seat and pulled the white bandages down. "Keep it up and I will return all these gifts."
"Even the 10-million-yen bracelet?"
"... Megumi shut up before I ground you." Satoru turned around and dragged his hand down his face. Was there a manual or a guidebook to this parenting thing? Because why was Megumi so damn sassy? There was no way Satoru was like that as a child. He was a saint. Everyone loved him and his big personality. But Megumi? That brat was rubbing off on Tsumiki, too. She used to be sweet. "Just take us to the closest mission. Kagome hasn't called yet, so that means she's still out shopping and you two will have to wait until she calls. Until then, you are stuck with me. And I outta make you do some missions because of your sass, Megumi."
"If I get hurt, then Kagome-san won't talk to you."
"Why would I let you get hurt?"
"Because you're mean."
"This is slander," Satoru groaned. "What did I do to deserve this?"
"Well..."
"No one asked you," he snapped at Ijichi, who let out a whimper. Satoru blew out a breath and crossed his arms. He kept silent for the rest of the ride and ignored Megumi when they got to the mission site. It wasn't Megumi calling him mean that set Satoru off, but Megumi's claims that he would allow him to get hurt on his watch. One day he won't be able to go on missions with Megumi because the brat would need to know how to defend himself, but that day was not today. Not when Megumi had a whole childhood ahead of him. It was not until the third mission that Satoru felt himself calm down, just in time for Kagome's phone call.
Perhaps it was stupid of him to leave Megumi and Tsumiki with a family he did not know and one that also housed a demon fox, but the older Higurashi female, Himari, was kind and had the look of a woman desperate for grandchildren. So, when she shooed him and Kagome out of the house and into the car where Ijichi waited, a part of Satoru felt as though he had done a good deed for the day.
"Do you normally fight in a skirt?" he asked, throwing an arm back against the seats. Satoru opted to sit in the backseat with Kagome so she would not feel alienated, and he did not want to look at Ijichi's ugly mug any longer than he had to.
"It's a Christmas dress," she quipped, unbuttoning her coat to reveal the red dress with the faux white fur. Satoru was not ashamed to admit that he barely paid the dress a second thought, not when her cleavage practically winked at him. "And yes, I normally fight in a skirt, but all my clothes are dirty." She huffed as she re-buttoned her coat. "Shippo got too excited about Christmas and somehow got all my clothes dirty or shredded except for this one." Her brows furrowed together.
Satoru coughed. His fingers brushed against her arm. "That's uh... some morning you had."
"Tell me about it," she groaned. "It's fine. I got some clothes in the washer, and I can always buy more later. Shippo was just... I don't know what he was doing or thinking, but it's fine."
It occurred to Satoru that he could bring up the trio's plans, but he did not want to share such news with Ijichi around. Perhaps if he had shared a bit of his troubles with Ijichi, then Ijichi would have felt compelled to share Plan M with him and Kagome, but Satoru was a proud sorcerer and an even prouder man, so he kept his concerns over what Megumi and company were planning to himself, and Ijichi did not share that he was instructed to leave Satoru and Kagome behind at the next mission site.
"So, what made you pick out a Santa's helper outfit?" Satoru asked once they arrived at the site. He frowned when Ijichi sped off after putting up the veil, which took longer than usual. He wondered at the time what that was about, but later discovered it was a part of Plan M.
Kagome shifted her bow from her shoulders to her hand. "Well, Shippo saw a movie and thought it would be more festive if we all had Christmas outfits. Maybe that's why this one didn't get ruined?" Kagome sighed. "Or maybe he was acting out? I don't know."
Satoru nodded and pretended as though he was not checking out Kagome's legs. This was a mission, not a date, and he needed to think with the head attached to his shoulders. "They may be planning something. The kids," he added as he opened the door to the abandoned school. He held up a finger for her to wait for him to go in first. He paused and then hummed to himself. "Any chance you could mask your energy somehow? Not that the curse can get away because of the veil Ijichi put up, but..."
"Oh, is my energy scaring them away? That explains a lot." She smiled, and the loss of her energy was devastating. Satoru clenched his fists. Sure, he asked her to do that, but he was not prepared for how empty he would feel at not having her energy simmering so close to him.
This was a problem.
A/N: Happy Sunday! With FFN going down for three days, I learned that the app and website don't really sync. So if you messaged me on the app, I'm sorry for not seeing it until now. I mainly hang out on the web because it's easier to upload stories that way. And friendly reminder that I do upload on Ao3 and Tumblr.
I don't know if anyone would be interested in having a discord, but I was thinking about creating one. If I do, I don't want it to be centered around just my stories. I would want it to be like an actual community. Just something that came to me while FFN was down.
Take care! Make sure to get plenty of rest and drink your water. Also try to stay vigilant when you are out and about. Always good to be aware of your surroundings. Stay safe!