InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Mating Season ❯ Upholding Tradition ( Chapter 51 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: SplendentGoddess 
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama / Adventure | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 08.20.2006 | Updated On: 07.31.2008 | Pages: 2 | Words: 3.9K | Visits: 10.5K | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama / Adventure | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 08.20.2006 | Updated On: 07.31.2008 | Pages: 2 | Words: 3.9K | Visits: 10.5K | Status: Completed
Blanket Disclaimer:
Inuyasha, and the characters therein, are the property of Rumiko Takahashi. I am in no way affiliated with Takahashi, or VIZ Productions.
========================
It’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for...Kagome and Inuyasha’s wedding!
Chapter 51 - Upholding Tradition
He couldn’t get headaches. He was a hanyou for kami’s sake. Yet the pounding between his temples would beg to differ, he could get headaches.
“Another cup of ramen?” Souta asked sympathetically. His response was nothing more than a muttered feh, though the ramen was accepted nonetheless.
Maybe it was just all the stress of being ruling partner getting to him. Maybe it was his natural worry over his growing (yet still unshowing) pup within his mate’s belly. Maybe it was the hidden fear that one day, the East may wage war. Maybe some of the wards her grandfather was stringing up around the shrine grounds actually worked…
After all, it couldn’t be nerves, right? I mean, what the hell would he have to be ‘nervous’ for? They’d already been mated for a fucking year (pun intended) and she was carrying his pup to prove it! But still, he’d never before seen the shrine look…so much like a shrine. Even the thirteen-year-old boy sitting across from him was dressed in a formal kimono! It made his demonic blood shudder. After Kagome had painstakingly assisted him in getting ready himself, they’d whisked her off upstairs, doing kami-knows-what to her natural beauty. Souta had seen it, and warned him. He sighed. He’d seen the women with their painted faces before. Kagome, in her sisterly love, had rescued Sango while caving-in with her friend’s desires for a “simple” wedding in the way that she’d agreed that the heavy makeup and overly elaborate costume seemed unnecessary. He only hoped that the paint didn’t stink as bad as he feared, or he may need to brush ramen broth under his nose just so he could breathe without sneezing.
He was seriously starting to wonder why they hadn’t opted for the “Western” style ceremony that, according to Kagome, was rapidly becoming more popular. Then again, she was from a shrine family, hence the unpleasant herbs he could smell being burned outside. Maybe he should do that broth thing anyway. Jii-chan had said in no uncertain terms that his granddaughter was to be “properly” wed. What happened to all that happy chest poking, demanding great-grandbabies? Apparently, “Grandpa” was gone, and “Shinto Priest” was currently residing in his place.
Recollecting the attire at Yuka’s Western ceremony, though, he looked down over himself and managed a small grin. At least his current outfit was more comfortable than that ‘suit’ had been. He could handle zori, even though the tabi were annoying, and everything else fit him the same as his fire-rat kimono.
He was dressed in a formal montsuki kimono he’d been given by Sesshoumaru. The senior Western Lord considered it the least he could do, considering that he could not personally attend the ceremony. While the prospect of actually attending a human wedding in the past would have been cause to invoke one of his rare laughs, he was now genuinely considering slipping away in five hundred years, so he could witness this moment in his little brother’s life.
The Inu no Taisho family crest adorned the back of his white and gold silk kataginu (sleeveless jacket) which was worn over his solid white silk kimono. He wore a white silk kosode underneath, both robes tucked into his white and gold striped silk hakama. Not failing to keep his trademark color, he wore a wide red sash at his waist, and under the circumstances, he got away with keeping Tetsusaiga with him, which was currently resting peacefully at his hip. Other than a slight difference in color patterns, and his lacking in body armor, he felt he’d never before in his life looked more like his older brother, and smiled again when he realized that the sudden thought hadn’t caused him any distress.
Inuyasha had also come to fully accept Kagura in her recent role as sister-in-law, and though he knew she had strived to achieve that acceptance in his heart, he was still utterly dumbfounded by her current gesture. It was a tradition in a Shinto wedding to carry a fan tucked into the obi, for good luck. Kagura had given him her fan. Well, okay, he was borrowing it, but still… She had shrugged off his drop-jaw expression, stating that Sesshoumaru had issued him his kimono, and that she wanted him to have something of hers as well, so she too could feel as though she were there. That was saying something on so many levels. Kagura was basically helpless without her fan, and would only be able to escape a battle upon her giant feather if trouble should strike. Lending Inuyasha her fan was Kagura’s way of stating that she had complete faith in her mate’s ability to protect her, and that she was standing down from her previous role as an independent warrior woman. Also, it stated that she trusted Inuyasha to return her weapon to her, undamaged…a weapon she’d used on him countless times.
Snapping out of his daydream when he felt Souta pry the empty styrofoam cup out of his hands, the hanyou rose to his feet when the boy indicated he should follow him outside. The last of Kagome’s friends had just exited the house moments prior, which meant that Kagome herself would be down shortly. Gulping down a quick swig of water, he followed his mate’s younger brother outside.
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She could hardly breathe. Why had she agreed to do this again? It wasn’t even like it was a legal wedding. It wasn’t like Inuyasha had any identification papers in her time, after all. But it wasn’t about the legality of it, since she would soon be disappearing from her time forever, or at least, for about half a millennia. Nooooo, it was about “honor.” Because somebody who shall remain nameless (she glared out her window evilly at the sutras hanging intermittently among the red and white paper lanterns) had decided that what she wanted would dishonor herself and her unborn child.
Now, don’t get me wrong. Kagome’s grandfather understood perfectly well the significance of her blood-bond with Inuyasha, and he did not feel her to be dishonoring herself or her child with such a commitment. No, I believe his words were “No daughter of this shrine shall make a mockery of such a solemn tradition.” He was referring to a Western ceremony, which Kagome had originally wanted, like most girls her age. Looking back on it, she probably should have left well enough alone, forgoing the wedding altogether, but it wasn’t even as though she had asked. Inuyasha had been speaking with her mother while she was at the clinic, and he’d basically proposed to her on the spot when she’d returned. Of course she had wanted to get married. She supposed, looking back on it all, the whole mess was really her fault. She was the daughter of a shrine family, after all, so what had she honestly excepted?
You wanted a wedding, and you’re getting a wedding… she told herself, mentally stopping herself from biting her lower lip, lest she get lipstick on her teeth. Careful what you wish for.
She had agreed to the traditional ceremony months ago. Her grandfather had shot down her original idea rather quickly, and initially, she’d agreed to go traditional without hesitation. Of course, that was before she was loaded down with thirty pounds of clothing. It was a good thing she had youkai blood flowing through her veins, increasing her physical strength, or she feared she’d have had trouble walking in the damn thing. Some friends she had! She hadn’t subjected Sango to anything nearly as elaborate! Her wedding ensemble was as layered as an onion, consisting of over a dozen individual pieces, including underclothes, robes, collars, and sashes. She was even wearing a fundoshi!
Why did I bother with that? she asked herself, having realized she may have gotten a little carried away when it came to tradition. Her ceremony may be traditional, but it was still the 21st century. But no, no speck of “Western” interference would step foot at her wedding…
She sighed.
Inuyasha hadn’t understood her distress at first, reminding her that she had wanted to have a traditional “human” wedding. It was at that point that she’d sat him down and explained that “humans” had several different traditions. She explained the difference between Western and Eastern, and he seemed to understand it well enough. For her, as was the same with many modern Japanese, the appeal of the Western ceremony had nothing to do with religion. She simply thought it was more romantic, more beautiful, and more comfortable (at least for her). She was glad he was able to experience Yuka’s wedding first hand. He had said that her friend’s white gown was amazing. Kagome had assured him then that he’d get to see her in one of those wedding dresses too, later, at the reception, when Western influence would once again be acceptable. But not toooo acceptable, after all, there was to be no dancing, whatsoever, only a musician playing a shamisen. How dull.
The only part of the Western ceremony her grandfather would have accepted incorporating into the actual wedding itself was the exchanging of rings. A custom Kagome ironically chose to veto herself. Neither her nor her mate had any real use for the delicate gold bands, not where they would be living. They’d most likely end up breaking, and even if they didn’t, it wasn’t exactly like anybody in that time would understand the symbolic nature of the rings to begin with. If, in theory, they were going to be poor, she may have considered it, thinking that in an emergency, they could use the gold in trade. But they were basically rich, royalty, regardless of the fact that it was in ‘youkai’ society.
Looking out the window, she sighed once more, while her mother and Yuka both happily, and rather frantically, finished loading her hair down with gold kanzashi ornaments and combs, as well as shells, beads, and ribbons. Originally, she had only wanted a wedding. Most little girls did. It was that “special day” they dreamt of, not the lifetime that came afterwards. They didn’t want to be married; they wanted a wedding. But after she’d realized how deeply in love she was with Inuyasha, she’d quickly put her priorities in order. She’d never honestly thought that an actual “wedding” would ever become a reality, and all she’d decided she truly wanted was her ‘Happily Ever After’ with the man she loved. She got her wish too, over a year ago. She understood all too well that what they were doing now, he was willing to do for her sake, but honestly, she felt as though it wasn’t truly so much for her sake, either. He may be doing it for her, but she was doing it for her family. Mama Higurashi deserved to see her baby girl get married.
Turning and catching her reflection in the mirror, she sighed a final time, attempting to psyche herself up while mentally chanting “Let’s do this thing”. She groaned internally at what had become of her long raven locks, even more so than her gaudy complexion. She almost would have preferred a wig. Surely a thousand bobby-pins would be easier to remove in the long run than the thing they had sculpted from her hair. As a twin set of giggles from behind draped her tsuno kakushi (wedding hood) around her head, effectively hiding the two golden tsuno in her hair, she resisted the urge to roll her eyes, knowing they’d catch it in the mirror if she did. She understood why they were laughing. Concealing her “horns” was meant to symbolize obedience. Kagome had to admit, while she had felt bad about accidentally sitting him, and had attempted to atone by submitting physically, the notion of “obeying” anyone, even Inuyasha, didn’t seem to fit in with her personality. Apparently, the women behind her knew that as well.
“It’s almost time…” her mother whispered, and she attempted to nod her response the best she could while her head was weighed down with so many ornaments, she mentally joked that she’d never make it past a metal detector. They were her mother’s from her own wedding, along with her entire kimono, and the fan and dagger she carried. Call it a dowry. Well, actually, that’s precisely what it was. She was pulled from her musings when Eri popped her head in, calling Yuka to join her. Her married friend sighed happily, gazing dreamily at Kagome once more, and whispering how beautiful she looked, before heading out the bedroom door.
Hypocrite.
Kagome snapped her eyes back to the mirror when her mother behind her spoke again, and deciding she was actually unable to nod, she managed to whisper a strained “Hai” instead, when asked if she was ready. Her eyes drifted from the reflection of her mother to her own once more before she turned and headed out. Who was it Souta had said she looked like? Queen Amidala?
Whoever that is.
Traveling between timelines had sort of put a damper on her movie time…
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The shrine was a bustle of activity. Jii-chan certainly had his hands full at the moment making all the last minute preparations. The ceremony itself was to be small and private, but the reception…
They had decided to forgo with the “new moon” wedding after Kagome’s school friends had already met Inuyasha at the carnival. There was no point in waiting until he looked human now; that’d just end up causing more questions when everyone started wondering why he’d dyed his hair. They all accepted him the way he was (as far as they knew) and Kagome most certainly did, so it was just as well.
Of course, there were going to be relatives present that had not come to her birthday party, and had never before met the hanyou. But Jii-chan supposed his granddaughter was right, that day and age, it wasn’t necessarily all that unusual to see someone with an abnormal hair color. Still, it was mild cause for worry in his eyes. Surely most people would probably just shrug off the white hair, and maybe even the amber eyes. Could be contacts, right? But what of his claws? His fangs? His ears? He was not going to be wearing a headpiece of any kind. How would the boy hide what he was from the eyes of the priest performing the ceremony? He would be right before the couple, reading the marriage oath, performing the ritualistic purification…
He shuddered.
Sure, Grandpa Higurashi had tried to purify the boy in the past, but that was in the past. It had almost become a running joke in a way, since everyone knew his sutras apparently didn’t seem to work. That was why he had hung the purification wards around the shrine. He had no desire to actually harm the hanyou boy. He was worried what the other priest would say or do, should he discover Inuyasha’s true nature.
Jii-chan had attempted to voice his concerns to his daughter-in-law when she’d first informed him that the ceremony was going to be during the day, but the woman (bless her bottomless heart) just didn’t seem to comprehend the possible ramifications. She’d merely waved him off, assuring him that Kagome and Inuyasha everything under control.
Noticing the boy approach him then, he suddenly thought that perhaps Nodoka had been right, after all.
“Okay, I give. Some sort of concealment spell? A barrier created by Kagome?”
He was asking how Inuyasha had managed to hide his ears.
“Nowhere near that complicated.” he chuckled, bowing low so that the old man could inspect his head.
In the eyes of the guests the groom-to-be was merely showing his respect, and when Jii-chan placed his hand atop the boy’s head, he appeared to be blessing him.
Gently parting the silken strands of silver mane, Jii-chan’s eyes widened when he spotted what he was looking for. There were his ears all right, folded back and flipped inside out like your pet dog’s ears might do, and held flush against his skull, kept in place with several bobby-pins.
“Doesn’t that hurt?” the elderly priest inquired quietly, but apparently not quietly enough for someone’s liking.
Yanking his head up and squinting, the hanyou teased “Well yeah, when you yell in ‘em like that.”
“Sorry…”
“Keh.” ;
“Well come on boy…” Jii-chan said after smiling a moment, then turning and gesturing with a wave of his hand for the hanyou youth to follow him, he stated “You’d better get in place.”
Inuyasha lost his smile as he suddenly became deathly serious, stretching his other senses to be more aware of the world around him as he approached the small building he’d never actually seen used before today. Pinning his ears down actually impaired his hearing rather severely. He could hear just fine, but without his ability to hone in on the sounds around him, he was unsure of what direction the sounds he heard were coming from. He could also feel a great deal of spiritual energy in the area, and knew that it wasn’t solely from his mate. It made his hackles rise.
Entering the honden, he noted the rice paper covering the flooring, as well as the continuation of the red and white decorations, which practically littered the entire grounds. He remembered asking Kagome about it while she was fixing his ears. He’d asked if she’d chosen the colors for his sake, and giggling, she’d told him that red and white were actually the traditional colors of happiness. He’d smirked at that, stating that it was no wonder she liked him so much. He’d received a playful slap on the arm for the remark, while she remained ever so gentle with what she was doing with her other hand, and those pins.
Continuing his inspection, Inuyasha noted the tables set up at the sides of the small room. Tables that already housed Kagome’s closest school friends, and their respective partners. All six humans were grinning at him stupidly. There were other humans in there that he didn’t know, as well, who were also looking at him, but with rather surprised and confused expressions. Kagome’s aunt and uncle, from her mother’s side, and a few cousins, if he remembered correctly. They’d flown in from…somewhere. He didn’t really pay attention to where she’d told him they lived, too caught up on the whole “flying” part, until that had been explained to him.
Apparently, they were less dismissive of his bizarre colorings, but hopefully, the looks he was receiving from the elder couple were merely in disapproval of his “punk” lifestyle. Kagome had warned him that her aunt and uncle, while not shrine people, were rather conservative. But even so, when he nodded in their direction, and offered them a smile (conscientious of his fangs), they nodded and smiled back in return. He could tell they would never be close, like he was with Kagome’s more immediate family, but at the same time, they had no intention of becoming enemies. They were not the source of the strange feeling he’d had ever since entering the small shrine, either. Something or somebody was sending his youkai into alert, and he had to mentally keep himself in check, ever so thankful that he had been permitted to keep Tetsusaiga. While his youkai had accepted the spiritual energy of his mate, this other energy was foreign, and his instincts were telling him that it was a potential threat. In order to alleviate his concern, he had to face it with his human side, analyze it, and rationalize it in his mind. So, he started scanning the room once more.
That’s when he spotted them, the pair of miko standing at either side of the priest. Sisters, if his nose didn’t fail him, which it didn’t. They were of no relation to the priest, but must have come from the same shrine. Kagome had warned him that a pair of priestesses traditionally accompanied the priest at those types of weddings. They were nowhere near as powerful as his mate, or even Kaede for that matter, but they did possess some spiritual powers. He could feel it, and he was worried. What he felt was reminiscent of ‘Early Kagome’, and he would bet that the pair could at the very least, shoot purifying arrows. Then another thought occurred to him. If he could feel them, wouldn’t it mean that they could feel him? Hopefully, even if they could, they wouldn’t recognize what it was they were feeling. After all, there couldn’t be too may youkai still around in Kagome’s time, right? So…it wasn’t like they would recognize youki if they sensed it. He hoped.
Catching their eyes as they noticed his stare, Inuyasha felt both women studying him, before they quickly offered a small smile as they passed, exiting with the priest to begin the procession. So far, so good…
Inuyasha, and the characters therein, are the property of Rumiko Takahashi. I am in no way affiliated with Takahashi, or VIZ Productions.
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It’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for...Kagome and Inuyasha’s wedding!
Chapter 51 - Upholding Tradition
He couldn’t get headaches. He was a hanyou for kami’s sake. Yet the pounding between his temples would beg to differ, he could get headaches.
“Another cup of ramen?” Souta asked sympathetically. His response was nothing more than a muttered feh, though the ramen was accepted nonetheless.
Maybe it was just all the stress of being ruling partner getting to him. Maybe it was his natural worry over his growing (yet still unshowing) pup within his mate’s belly. Maybe it was the hidden fear that one day, the East may wage war. Maybe some of the wards her grandfather was stringing up around the shrine grounds actually worked…
After all, it couldn’t be nerves, right? I mean, what the hell would he have to be ‘nervous’ for? They’d already been mated for a fucking year (pun intended) and she was carrying his pup to prove it! But still, he’d never before seen the shrine look…so much like a shrine. Even the thirteen-year-old boy sitting across from him was dressed in a formal kimono! It made his demonic blood shudder. After Kagome had painstakingly assisted him in getting ready himself, they’d whisked her off upstairs, doing kami-knows-what to her natural beauty. Souta had seen it, and warned him. He sighed. He’d seen the women with their painted faces before. Kagome, in her sisterly love, had rescued Sango while caving-in with her friend’s desires for a “simple” wedding in the way that she’d agreed that the heavy makeup and overly elaborate costume seemed unnecessary. He only hoped that the paint didn’t stink as bad as he feared, or he may need to brush ramen broth under his nose just so he could breathe without sneezing.
He was seriously starting to wonder why they hadn’t opted for the “Western” style ceremony that, according to Kagome, was rapidly becoming more popular. Then again, she was from a shrine family, hence the unpleasant herbs he could smell being burned outside. Maybe he should do that broth thing anyway. Jii-chan had said in no uncertain terms that his granddaughter was to be “properly” wed. What happened to all that happy chest poking, demanding great-grandbabies? Apparently, “Grandpa” was gone, and “Shinto Priest” was currently residing in his place.
Recollecting the attire at Yuka’s Western ceremony, though, he looked down over himself and managed a small grin. At least his current outfit was more comfortable than that ‘suit’ had been. He could handle zori, even though the tabi were annoying, and everything else fit him the same as his fire-rat kimono.
He was dressed in a formal montsuki kimono he’d been given by Sesshoumaru. The senior Western Lord considered it the least he could do, considering that he could not personally attend the ceremony. While the prospect of actually attending a human wedding in the past would have been cause to invoke one of his rare laughs, he was now genuinely considering slipping away in five hundred years, so he could witness this moment in his little brother’s life.
The Inu no Taisho family crest adorned the back of his white and gold silk kataginu (sleeveless jacket) which was worn over his solid white silk kimono. He wore a white silk kosode underneath, both robes tucked into his white and gold striped silk hakama. Not failing to keep his trademark color, he wore a wide red sash at his waist, and under the circumstances, he got away with keeping Tetsusaiga with him, which was currently resting peacefully at his hip. Other than a slight difference in color patterns, and his lacking in body armor, he felt he’d never before in his life looked more like his older brother, and smiled again when he realized that the sudden thought hadn’t caused him any distress.
Inuyasha had also come to fully accept Kagura in her recent role as sister-in-law, and though he knew she had strived to achieve that acceptance in his heart, he was still utterly dumbfounded by her current gesture. It was a tradition in a Shinto wedding to carry a fan tucked into the obi, for good luck. Kagura had given him her fan. Well, okay, he was borrowing it, but still… She had shrugged off his drop-jaw expression, stating that Sesshoumaru had issued him his kimono, and that she wanted him to have something of hers as well, so she too could feel as though she were there. That was saying something on so many levels. Kagura was basically helpless without her fan, and would only be able to escape a battle upon her giant feather if trouble should strike. Lending Inuyasha her fan was Kagura’s way of stating that she had complete faith in her mate’s ability to protect her, and that she was standing down from her previous role as an independent warrior woman. Also, it stated that she trusted Inuyasha to return her weapon to her, undamaged…a weapon she’d used on him countless times.
Snapping out of his daydream when he felt Souta pry the empty styrofoam cup out of his hands, the hanyou rose to his feet when the boy indicated he should follow him outside. The last of Kagome’s friends had just exited the house moments prior, which meant that Kagome herself would be down shortly. Gulping down a quick swig of water, he followed his mate’s younger brother outside.
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She could hardly breathe. Why had she agreed to do this again? It wasn’t even like it was a legal wedding. It wasn’t like Inuyasha had any identification papers in her time, after all. But it wasn’t about the legality of it, since she would soon be disappearing from her time forever, or at least, for about half a millennia. Nooooo, it was about “honor.” Because somebody who shall remain nameless (she glared out her window evilly at the sutras hanging intermittently among the red and white paper lanterns) had decided that what she wanted would dishonor herself and her unborn child.
Now, don’t get me wrong. Kagome’s grandfather understood perfectly well the significance of her blood-bond with Inuyasha, and he did not feel her to be dishonoring herself or her child with such a commitment. No, I believe his words were “No daughter of this shrine shall make a mockery of such a solemn tradition.” He was referring to a Western ceremony, which Kagome had originally wanted, like most girls her age. Looking back on it, she probably should have left well enough alone, forgoing the wedding altogether, but it wasn’t even as though she had asked. Inuyasha had been speaking with her mother while she was at the clinic, and he’d basically proposed to her on the spot when she’d returned. Of course she had wanted to get married. She supposed, looking back on it all, the whole mess was really her fault. She was the daughter of a shrine family, after all, so what had she honestly excepted?
You wanted a wedding, and you’re getting a wedding… she told herself, mentally stopping herself from biting her lower lip, lest she get lipstick on her teeth. Careful what you wish for.
She had agreed to the traditional ceremony months ago. Her grandfather had shot down her original idea rather quickly, and initially, she’d agreed to go traditional without hesitation. Of course, that was before she was loaded down with thirty pounds of clothing. It was a good thing she had youkai blood flowing through her veins, increasing her physical strength, or she feared she’d have had trouble walking in the damn thing. Some friends she had! She hadn’t subjected Sango to anything nearly as elaborate! Her wedding ensemble was as layered as an onion, consisting of over a dozen individual pieces, including underclothes, robes, collars, and sashes. She was even wearing a fundoshi!
Why did I bother with that? she asked herself, having realized she may have gotten a little carried away when it came to tradition. Her ceremony may be traditional, but it was still the 21st century. But no, no speck of “Western” interference would step foot at her wedding…
She sighed.
Inuyasha hadn’t understood her distress at first, reminding her that she had wanted to have a traditional “human” wedding. It was at that point that she’d sat him down and explained that “humans” had several different traditions. She explained the difference between Western and Eastern, and he seemed to understand it well enough. For her, as was the same with many modern Japanese, the appeal of the Western ceremony had nothing to do with religion. She simply thought it was more romantic, more beautiful, and more comfortable (at least for her). She was glad he was able to experience Yuka’s wedding first hand. He had said that her friend’s white gown was amazing. Kagome had assured him then that he’d get to see her in one of those wedding dresses too, later, at the reception, when Western influence would once again be acceptable. But not toooo acceptable, after all, there was to be no dancing, whatsoever, only a musician playing a shamisen. How dull.
The only part of the Western ceremony her grandfather would have accepted incorporating into the actual wedding itself was the exchanging of rings. A custom Kagome ironically chose to veto herself. Neither her nor her mate had any real use for the delicate gold bands, not where they would be living. They’d most likely end up breaking, and even if they didn’t, it wasn’t exactly like anybody in that time would understand the symbolic nature of the rings to begin with. If, in theory, they were going to be poor, she may have considered it, thinking that in an emergency, they could use the gold in trade. But they were basically rich, royalty, regardless of the fact that it was in ‘youkai’ society.
Looking out the window, she sighed once more, while her mother and Yuka both happily, and rather frantically, finished loading her hair down with gold kanzashi ornaments and combs, as well as shells, beads, and ribbons. Originally, she had only wanted a wedding. Most little girls did. It was that “special day” they dreamt of, not the lifetime that came afterwards. They didn’t want to be married; they wanted a wedding. But after she’d realized how deeply in love she was with Inuyasha, she’d quickly put her priorities in order. She’d never honestly thought that an actual “wedding” would ever become a reality, and all she’d decided she truly wanted was her ‘Happily Ever After’ with the man she loved. She got her wish too, over a year ago. She understood all too well that what they were doing now, he was willing to do for her sake, but honestly, she felt as though it wasn’t truly so much for her sake, either. He may be doing it for her, but she was doing it for her family. Mama Higurashi deserved to see her baby girl get married.
Turning and catching her reflection in the mirror, she sighed a final time, attempting to psyche herself up while mentally chanting “Let’s do this thing”. She groaned internally at what had become of her long raven locks, even more so than her gaudy complexion. She almost would have preferred a wig. Surely a thousand bobby-pins would be easier to remove in the long run than the thing they had sculpted from her hair. As a twin set of giggles from behind draped her tsuno kakushi (wedding hood) around her head, effectively hiding the two golden tsuno in her hair, she resisted the urge to roll her eyes, knowing they’d catch it in the mirror if she did. She understood why they were laughing. Concealing her “horns” was meant to symbolize obedience. Kagome had to admit, while she had felt bad about accidentally sitting him, and had attempted to atone by submitting physically, the notion of “obeying” anyone, even Inuyasha, didn’t seem to fit in with her personality. Apparently, the women behind her knew that as well.
“It’s almost time…” her mother whispered, and she attempted to nod her response the best she could while her head was weighed down with so many ornaments, she mentally joked that she’d never make it past a metal detector. They were her mother’s from her own wedding, along with her entire kimono, and the fan and dagger she carried. Call it a dowry. Well, actually, that’s precisely what it was. She was pulled from her musings when Eri popped her head in, calling Yuka to join her. Her married friend sighed happily, gazing dreamily at Kagome once more, and whispering how beautiful she looked, before heading out the bedroom door.
Hypocrite.
Kagome snapped her eyes back to the mirror when her mother behind her spoke again, and deciding she was actually unable to nod, she managed to whisper a strained “Hai” instead, when asked if she was ready. Her eyes drifted from the reflection of her mother to her own once more before she turned and headed out. Who was it Souta had said she looked like? Queen Amidala?
Whoever that is.
Traveling between timelines had sort of put a damper on her movie time…
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The shrine was a bustle of activity. Jii-chan certainly had his hands full at the moment making all the last minute preparations. The ceremony itself was to be small and private, but the reception…
They had decided to forgo with the “new moon” wedding after Kagome’s school friends had already met Inuyasha at the carnival. There was no point in waiting until he looked human now; that’d just end up causing more questions when everyone started wondering why he’d dyed his hair. They all accepted him the way he was (as far as they knew) and Kagome most certainly did, so it was just as well.
Of course, there were going to be relatives present that had not come to her birthday party, and had never before met the hanyou. But Jii-chan supposed his granddaughter was right, that day and age, it wasn’t necessarily all that unusual to see someone with an abnormal hair color. Still, it was mild cause for worry in his eyes. Surely most people would probably just shrug off the white hair, and maybe even the amber eyes. Could be contacts, right? But what of his claws? His fangs? His ears? He was not going to be wearing a headpiece of any kind. How would the boy hide what he was from the eyes of the priest performing the ceremony? He would be right before the couple, reading the marriage oath, performing the ritualistic purification…
He shuddered.
Sure, Grandpa Higurashi had tried to purify the boy in the past, but that was in the past. It had almost become a running joke in a way, since everyone knew his sutras apparently didn’t seem to work. That was why he had hung the purification wards around the shrine. He had no desire to actually harm the hanyou boy. He was worried what the other priest would say or do, should he discover Inuyasha’s true nature.
Jii-chan had attempted to voice his concerns to his daughter-in-law when she’d first informed him that the ceremony was going to be during the day, but the woman (bless her bottomless heart) just didn’t seem to comprehend the possible ramifications. She’d merely waved him off, assuring him that Kagome and Inuyasha everything under control.
Noticing the boy approach him then, he suddenly thought that perhaps Nodoka had been right, after all.
“Okay, I give. Some sort of concealment spell? A barrier created by Kagome?”
He was asking how Inuyasha had managed to hide his ears.
“Nowhere near that complicated.” he chuckled, bowing low so that the old man could inspect his head.
In the eyes of the guests the groom-to-be was merely showing his respect, and when Jii-chan placed his hand atop the boy’s head, he appeared to be blessing him.
Gently parting the silken strands of silver mane, Jii-chan’s eyes widened when he spotted what he was looking for. There were his ears all right, folded back and flipped inside out like your pet dog’s ears might do, and held flush against his skull, kept in place with several bobby-pins.
“Doesn’t that hurt?” the elderly priest inquired quietly, but apparently not quietly enough for someone’s liking.
Yanking his head up and squinting, the hanyou teased “Well yeah, when you yell in ‘em like that.”
“Sorry…”
“Keh.” ;
“Well come on boy…” Jii-chan said after smiling a moment, then turning and gesturing with a wave of his hand for the hanyou youth to follow him, he stated “You’d better get in place.”
Inuyasha lost his smile as he suddenly became deathly serious, stretching his other senses to be more aware of the world around him as he approached the small building he’d never actually seen used before today. Pinning his ears down actually impaired his hearing rather severely. He could hear just fine, but without his ability to hone in on the sounds around him, he was unsure of what direction the sounds he heard were coming from. He could also feel a great deal of spiritual energy in the area, and knew that it wasn’t solely from his mate. It made his hackles rise.
Entering the honden, he noted the rice paper covering the flooring, as well as the continuation of the red and white decorations, which practically littered the entire grounds. He remembered asking Kagome about it while she was fixing his ears. He’d asked if she’d chosen the colors for his sake, and giggling, she’d told him that red and white were actually the traditional colors of happiness. He’d smirked at that, stating that it was no wonder she liked him so much. He’d received a playful slap on the arm for the remark, while she remained ever so gentle with what she was doing with her other hand, and those pins.
Continuing his inspection, Inuyasha noted the tables set up at the sides of the small room. Tables that already housed Kagome’s closest school friends, and their respective partners. All six humans were grinning at him stupidly. There were other humans in there that he didn’t know, as well, who were also looking at him, but with rather surprised and confused expressions. Kagome’s aunt and uncle, from her mother’s side, and a few cousins, if he remembered correctly. They’d flown in from…somewhere. He didn’t really pay attention to where she’d told him they lived, too caught up on the whole “flying” part, until that had been explained to him.
Apparently, they were less dismissive of his bizarre colorings, but hopefully, the looks he was receiving from the elder couple were merely in disapproval of his “punk” lifestyle. Kagome had warned him that her aunt and uncle, while not shrine people, were rather conservative. But even so, when he nodded in their direction, and offered them a smile (conscientious of his fangs), they nodded and smiled back in return. He could tell they would never be close, like he was with Kagome’s more immediate family, but at the same time, they had no intention of becoming enemies. They were not the source of the strange feeling he’d had ever since entering the small shrine, either. Something or somebody was sending his youkai into alert, and he had to mentally keep himself in check, ever so thankful that he had been permitted to keep Tetsusaiga. While his youkai had accepted the spiritual energy of his mate, this other energy was foreign, and his instincts were telling him that it was a potential threat. In order to alleviate his concern, he had to face it with his human side, analyze it, and rationalize it in his mind. So, he started scanning the room once more.
That’s when he spotted them, the pair of miko standing at either side of the priest. Sisters, if his nose didn’t fail him, which it didn’t. They were of no relation to the priest, but must have come from the same shrine. Kagome had warned him that a pair of priestesses traditionally accompanied the priest at those types of weddings. They were nowhere near as powerful as his mate, or even Kaede for that matter, but they did possess some spiritual powers. He could feel it, and he was worried. What he felt was reminiscent of ‘Early Kagome’, and he would bet that the pair could at the very least, shoot purifying arrows. Then another thought occurred to him. If he could feel them, wouldn’t it mean that they could feel him? Hopefully, even if they could, they wouldn’t recognize what it was they were feeling. After all, there couldn’t be too may youkai still around in Kagome’s time, right? So…it wasn’t like they would recognize youki if they sensed it. He hoped.
Catching their eyes as they noticed his stare, Inuyasha felt both women studying him, before they quickly offered a small smile as they passed, exiting with the priest to begin the procession. So far, so good…