InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Tale of Ever After ❯ Chapter 111

I do not own InuYasha or any of the characters created by Rumiko Takahashi

Chapter 110


As Kagome cleaned up after breakfast InuYasha went outside to work on his firewood.  

“Kinjiro did a good job,” he said, admiring the stack that Aki had knocked down the day before. “I wonder how Daisuke-jiji is doing for firewood? Maybe I should think about taking some down tomorrow.”

InuYasha was about to take off his jacket and get to work when Kagome came out of the house. She didn’t say anything, so he stopped what he was doing as he watched her look thoughtfully up at the sky.

He looked at her curiously.“What are you thinking about, woman?”

“I really ought to do some laundry. I never did get my chihaya washed yesterday,” she said. “I was just checking the weather.”

“It’s not going to rain, if that’s what you’re worried about,” he said, walking over next to her. “But I thought you said you wanted to take it easy. You call doing laundry taking it easy?”

Kagome gave him a wry little turn of her lips, amused. “I need to do it sometime. It feels like a good time to do it.”

The hanyou shrugged. “Not my idea of relaxing, but then, here I am chopping wood.” He gave her a small smile, amused at his own words. “If it makes you happy, why not? Want me to fill up the tub?”

Kagome beamed at him. “Would you? It’s more work carrying the water than washing the clothes.”  

He walked over and grabbed the big tub from where it rested in the front of the house. “Sure. Why not?”

“Maybe it is silly of me to want to work. But it’s not learning more about how to make medicines,” Kagome said as Inu began to move the big tub. “Or even more tiring, going to meetings to deal with bad boys. It’ll be nice for a change. I’ll go get the things that need washing.” She walked back inside.

Not exactly sure about his wife’s reasoning, he decided not to try to understand it, and instead, just carried the tub to its place near the clothesline.

A sparrow landed next to the futon. “Hey, bird, get away from there. She doesn’t need to be washing the futon, too!”

The bird turned its head, looking at him quizzically for a moment, then flew off.

“Must be something about birds today,” he said. “I shouldn’t complain too much, I guess. They started my day off nice. But,” he said, shaking his fist at the nearby trees, “no messing with the futon!”

A bird began to squawk as he finished. Smiling, he headed back to the house to get the water bucket.

As he stepped inside, he found Kagome going through their things, making a small pile that included her miko robes. She picked up a clean under kosode. “Here, put this on,” she said. “Your shirt needs washing more than this one does.”

“Isn’t that the one Hisa gave you when Tameo added you to the family?” he said, surprised. “You want me to wear your undershirt?”

“Hisa may have given it to us,” Kagome said, “but I like the ones that have pocket sleeves. This one’s cut with sleeves like the ones on your shirt. And yours really needs washing. After all that running yesterday...”

“Feh,” he said, shrugging off his jacket, and taking off his under kosode. “It’s been dirtier. You’re sure I can wear that one?”

Kagome nodded, took his kosode and laid it next to the one she wanted him to wear. The cleaner one was just a little longer, but about the same width. In most other ways, it looked identical. “Looks like it’ll work.”

“Yeah,” he admitted. “Just don’t tell Miroku. He’d tease the hells out of me.”

“I promise,” Kagome said, “Although the one I’m making for you looks just like this one, too. He’d never know it was mine. Sango cut out the shirt I’m making for you, too. And it looks just like this. I bet Miroku’s look just the same.”

“He likes pocket sleeves, too,” he said. “You should see all the stuff the twins give him to hold sometimes.” He grinned. “It’s a wonder he can lift his arms.”

“I can believe that. I’ve seen how good at finding things Yusuko is, especially.” She walked up to him and rested the palms of her hands on his chest, admiring his build, then looking up at his face. “It’s a shame.”

“What is?” InuYasha asked, resting his hands on hers.

“That you need to cover that up.” She drew circles with her hands across his chest. “If I could, I’d have you run around like this all day.” The smile she gave him was sultry. “That’s a sight I’m much rather see.”

“Like yesterday, bold woman?” he asked, giving her a smirk every bit as sultry. “I wouldn’t mind if you were dressed the way you were yesterday, either.”

“You mean splattered with youkai guts?” she asked, raising an eyebrow in mock disbelief.

“You know what I mean,” he said as he leaned forward, close enough that she could feel his breath. “More like how you were dressed after your bath, with nothing but a towel around your head.”

She giggled and tiptoed up to give him a quick kiss. “Then we’d never get anything done.”

“True, which is why I need to put on a kosode,” he said, letting her go, and bending down to pick up the garment she laid out for him. “And if I want to get my own shirt back, I guess I have to let you get busy, and not parade around like I did yesterday, even if you like the view.” He shrugged it on.

“Yes, you do,” Kagome said, picking up the dirty kosode and tossing it into the stack of clothes to be washed. “But it doesn’t mean I don’t like what I saw.”

She continued to gather their dirty laundry together, but grinned at the look he gave her, hungry, with the promise of business to finish later as InuYasha grabbed the water bucket.

“Get your laundry, woman,” he said, and headed out of the door.

He had gotten the first two buckets in the tub, and was filling the third when he heard a familiar jingle coming down the pathway. Lifting up the bucket, he turned to see Miroku heading up the path toward the house. Taking his water, he walked back to washing area and poured it into the tub.

“Laundry day?” Miroku asked, looking at the tub of water. “Kagome’s home today?”

InuYasha shrugged. “Kaede-babaa told her to take a day off. This is what she wanted to do.”

“The things women think are relaxing,” Miroku said, shaking his head. “I’ll never quite understand it.”

Kagome came out about then, carrying a basket with her laundry. “Hello, Miroku. Getting ready to make your rounds?” She walked over to the tub of water, which she examined. “I think I need another bucket of water,” she said, looking at InuYasha, who nodded. Kneeling down next to the tub, she put in a few pieces to start soaking.

“Not really,” Miroku said, watching her start her washing. “I think I badgered everybody enough yesterday. If I start again today...”

InuYasha started walking back to the stream.

“They might think less of you?” the miko replied, pushing one of the kosodes down deeper into the water when it tried to float to the surface.

Miroku smiled, not admitting anything. “I will stop by to check on Haname later, I think.”

Kagome nodded. “How was she doing yesterday?”

“Tired. Weak. Sad,” the monk replied.

“I hope it all works out,” she said, beginning to knead the water through the clothes in the tub.

“Indeed. Maybe, though, Haname will see what a good girl she has in her granddaughter. Setsuko has been very helpful. I don’t know how that family ended up the way they are.” He sighed, and shook his head. “To change the subject, Sango wants to know if you’re planning on coming over today.” He shifted his staff, which made the rings jingle. “I think she’s a bit nervous about tomorrow, to be honest.”

Kagome looked up at the monk. “Nervous? Why?”

Miroku nodded. “About going to visit Hisa tomorrow. It would be good for her to go, but...” The monk shrugged. “Someone in the village, I don’t know who, must have made her feel unwelcome at the women’s meetings before. But if you make a push, I’m sure she’d be willing to go. It’ll be easier for her, not being alone.”

“I know Hisa-obasan really wants her to come,” Kagome said. She picked up one of the garments in the tub, examined it, and began scrubbing a particularly soiled spot before dunking it back in the water. “I’ll be sure to stop in later.”

“Good, good.” Miroku nodded his head. “And don’t forget Momoe. You promised to give her home a blessing, and when I came to get you yesterday, you were gone.”

“Oh!” Kagome said, dropping the cloth back into the water. “I absolutely forgot. After InuYasha had to run after Aki...”

“We had other things we had to do,” InuYasha said. He walked over to the tub and poured his bucket into the tub.

“Ah,” Miroku said. “I let Momoe know we’d come back on the next auspicious day. Yesterday really wasn’t a good day for a blessing, anyway. The next good one is in three days.”

Kagome gave him a grateful look. “Thanks. I wanted to talk to Kaede about that before I do it, too.”

“Not a bad idea,” the monk said. “I’m sure she’s had more experience, and knows what Momoe will be expecting a miko to do.” He turned to InuYasha. “Kinjiro told me about your interesting afternoon yesterday. You caught Aki after he tried to run away?”

“Baka cut the rope Kinjiro had used to hobble him, knocked over as much of my firewood as he could manage, and headed for a hidey hole not far from Daitaro’s place,” InuYasha said. “I feel sorry for Kinjiro dealing with that brat. He’s a real mess right now.” The hanyou put the bucket he was holding down.

“I wouldn’t feel too sorry,” Miroku said. “Last I saw, Kinjiro had hobbled him with a chain. They were cleaning up some mess over by Daitaro’s place, and he was complaining about how the chain felt on his legs. That was not a happy boy.”

“Those are two stubborn people, Aki and Kinjiro.” InuYasha walked over to the other side of the house with Miroku in tow. “It’s going to be like hitting two rocks together, chips and sparks flying off from time to time. Still, my money’s on Kinjiro. At least he has more experience at being stubborn than that brat.”

“It will be interesting to see who gives in first,” the monk said, nodding. “But Daitaro is no fool. Either that boy will be ready to settle down by the time he goes to the old man’s house, or he’ll be so rebellious that they’ll have to think of something else to do with him.”

“Yeah.” InuYasha took off his jacket and picked up his axe. “He’s a smart one, that old man. Me, I think Aki’ll settle down. It’s not all sparks and fireworks. I’ve listened to Kinjiro talk to the boy. He might even learn something. But I guess we’ll see.” He walked over to the tree he’d been limbing. “So how’s tomorrow looking?”

“We’ll have plenty of help. I’ve got promises from about ten people.” Miroku sat down.

“I hope they’re better at roofing than I am,” InuYasha said. “I remember how stupid I felt when I put the roof on my own house. I was lucky people had pity on me.”

“Oh, I remember,” Miroku said, sitting on the ground near the house. “Ryota was very nice, rescuing you that way.”

“He didn’t rescue me,” InuYasha said. “Just kept me from being any more of an ass than I already felt like that day. Started putting roofing mud down before I had sheathed enough of the roof. I’d have gotten out of there eventually. I just didn’t want to have to break anything while I was at it.” The hanyou picked out a limb and let his axe go to work.

“Whatever you want to call it, InuYasha. Still, I would have liked to have seen it,” Miroku said.

“Probably a good thing you didn’t,” InuYasha said. “The way you tease, you might not have been here to see your son born.”

“Point taken,” the monk agreed, chuckling. “Kwannon is merciful.”