InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Mating Season ❯ Kagome in the Sky with Diamonds ( Chapter 76 )
[ 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: 01.24.2007 | Updated On: 08.18.2008 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.1K | Visits: 9.3K | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama / Adventure | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 01.24.2007 | Updated On: 08.18.2008 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.1K | Visits: 9.3K | 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.
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Chapter 76 - Kagome in the Sky with Diamonds
“Picture yourself on a boat in a river…” the future-born miko sang to her young one, often thinking up as many songs as she could remember from her century, as she didn’t know that many from her current era.
Sure, okay…cellophane flowers and rocking horse people didn’t really make a whole lot of sense, but neither did “pure has now become impure” in her book.
Inuyasha smiled at the scene, ignoring the fact that he didn’t understand half of what she was singing about, as he cherished the simple fact that little Kazuki (who got bigger every day) was going to grow up in a happy, steady environment, no matter what. Even if…the gods forbid…something ever happened to him, he knew that Sesshoumaru would make sure that Kagome and their pups were well cared for. His mate would never have to know the turmoil he knew his own mother had faced, having to raise a hanyou child on her own, facing prejudice and persecution from her own family who, though they did not officially cast Izayoi aside, had also offered no assistance when it came to caring for her infant.
Inuyasha’s smile increased when he caught Kazuki’s curious gaze, probably wondering what a turnstile was. Though he didn’t speak very often, yet, he had finally gotten to the point where he could understand the words that were being said around him. A mixed blessing, when you considered Inuyasha’s colorful vocabulary. The adult hanyou did his best to watch what he said, under threat from his mate to reintroduce the rosary’s original function. That unpleasantness aside, though, he was proud of how fast his son was learning. The concept of an actual spoken ‘language’ was foreign to inu, as their native tongue came to them instinctively, and most communication was done through interpretation of body language. But the little guy was getting it, Inuyasha grinned. He said Tou and Kaa and Nii, for identifying himself, as well as Kagome and Shippo. Inuyasha knew they had to break him of simply barking all of the time, or he’d never learn to speak. Then came the fun part, the never-ending questions… He was pretty sure he could handle “Why is the sky blue?” or “How do birds fly?” The one that Inuyasha knew was going to be hard was “What’s a hanyou?” He was going to have to explain to his son why they were different from everyone else. He was also still debating on whether or not to ever explain to Kazuki precisely where, or more accurately, when his mother was from. Did he really need to know that? Perhaps, in a few years, when the youth was old enough to understand the consequences should a truth like that ever become public, he would take the time to explain it to him. After all, Kagome’s knowledge of ‘history’ was going to be playing an intricate part in their future. Surely, Kazuki would one day wonder where Okaa had gotten all of her information from, not to mention those books, as well as all of the other foreign objects from her time that they currently still used. But Inuyasha also knew that he didn’t really need to worry about any of that just yet. In the mean time, the elder hanyou relished in the stability he knew he had secured for his son(s) - Shippo included - that neither pup would ever have to know what it was like to grow up without the comfort of a loving family.
“What’s kaleidoscope eyes?” said kitsune suddenly asked, sitting around the fire with his parents, as dinner was nearly ready.
“Come’ere and I’ll show ya.” Inuyasha told his oldest (Kagome having previously explained it to him), as he proceeded to demonstrate by letting some of his youkai fleck his amber eyes with swirls of crimson.
“Neat!” Shippo squealed, before he proceeded to concentrate, and create a mirrored illusion of the occurrence within his own eyes.
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After receiving word from his half-brother regarding the success of their negotiations in the North, Sesshoumaru pulled Rin aside for one of their rare conversations. Not many words were ever needed between the two, each able to read the other so thoroughly.
“We have allied ourselves with the North.” he stated bluntly. It was direct, and to the point. He would not dishonor her by coddling her mortal emotions on the subject by attempting to shield her from the truth. The Rin he had raised was stronger than that.
“As it should be.” was her response, though something nearly indistinguishable in her eyes managed to catch his attention.
Offering her the rarest of glimpses into his own emotions, that particular one being concern, the Taiyoukai asked her simply “Will this trouble you?”
Puffing out her chest with pride and determination, the human girl stated “It would have troubled me only if they had remained our enemies. As allies we only grow stronger.”
“It is unavoidable that you will one day be in their presence.” he pointed out.
“Many truths of life are unavoidable.” was her cryptic response.
Something was definitely bothering her, though he doubted it was the wolves directly. More like what they represented…her mortality. Of course, Sesshoumaru knew one way in which Rin would be ensured the lifespan of a youkai, but he felt it was best to keep that information from her, for the time being. If she were going to be making decisions soon regarding her future life-mate, he wanted those decisions to be based upon whom she truly wanted in her heart, and nothing else.
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“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely.”
“But…a re you sure?”
“I’ll be fine…” Shippo assured, “We both need the practice.”
“I can always make a barrier, if need be.” Kagome pointed out, miko aura at the ready.
“Well…”
“You know you want to.” the kitsune taunted, transforming himself into a perfect replica of the Taijiya’s husband. “Oh random fair maiden of unquestionable beauty…” he spoke to Kirara, the neko rolling her eyes while Kagome suppressed a giggle, “…would you do me the immeasurable honor of bearing my child?”
“Hiraikotsu!”
“Eep!” ;
Inuyasha, who was currently holding Emi while Kazuki crawled around at his feet, did his best not to laugh outright at the way Shippo attempted to dodge pass after pass of Sango’s giant boomerang. He was right, of course, they both did need the practice. Sango hadn’t swung her weapon in quite some time, and Shippo needed the speed training.
“If only Miroku could have been here to see that.” Inuyasha chuckled more to himself, though Kagome heard him effortlessly. They both wondered how well the ex-monk would have taken Shippo’s rather…creative…method of getting Sango to launch her attack.
Miroku, in the mean time, was currently victim to another form of torment. “The Talk” with Kohaku. The ex-monk had known it was a fool’s hope that the young man would care to open up to his older sister regarding such things. It wasn’t that Kohaku was uneducated in certain areas. That discussion had taken place with his own father, well before Naraku’s attack. But there were certain other things he needed to discus with Miroku…certain ways Kaori made him feel.
“How did you know that Ane-ue was the one?” the teen asked his brother-in-law uneasily.
He knew about Miroku’s past, but he also knew that the ex-monk genuinely loved his older sister, and it was because of his past that he thought that maybe he’d be the one to ask when it came to distinguishing true love from physical lust.
Miroku did his best to explain that true love included physical lust…but also went unfathomably beyond. Choosing his words carefully, he reminded the lad of their previous mission, as he told him honestly that the first time he’d realized he loved Sango, was when he’d realized he would gladly die to protect her. Sure, it was easy for anyone to make such a claim verbally, but when your life actually was on the line, it suddenly brought forth a lucidity that most men lacked when examining their heart. Respectively, Miroku confessed that he first realized that Sango loved him in return, when she’d proclaimed her willingness to die on his behalf. No one had ever done that before, and it had touched him deeply, even if he hadn’t shown it much at the time.
Nodding, Kohaku thought he understood, regrettably remembering the time Miroku spoke of, at Mt. Hakurei. He hadn’t remembered who “that woman” was at the time, but even still, he’d known he wanted to see her to safety. He was glad his Ane-ue had chosen such a fierce, loyal husband.
Kohaku prayed that his and Kaori’s lives were never in danger, but he already knew, should the village ever fall under attack, he would not hesitate to give his life to save hers. They would both be sixteen soon, plenty old enough to marry. Now Kohaku had another question to ask his brother-in-law.
“Can you teach me…how to build a house?”
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With summer well underway, Kagome enjoyed spending most evenings under the stars, lying out by the Goshinboku, while her mate rested within its branches. Sometimes even more so than in her old world, she found life in the feudal era accompanied by a hustle and bustle she hadn’t been expecting. Sure, in one sense, everything was quiet and peaceful, serene and tranquil, and any other synonyms you could think of…but it was also very grueling. In the modern era, most people only had to worry about getting up and going to work, doing some kind of job or another in order to make money, in order to pay bills…lather, rinse, repeat. There, in the feudal era, you had to till your own fields, grow your own crops, hunt your own game, skin your own game (it still made her pale at times), sew your own clothes…the list just went on and on. Grocery store? Ha! Money? Sure, it existed, but that wasn’t to say that most people had any. Money there was something to truly be treasured. Hell…it practically was treasure, the most valuable of coins currently being made from gold.
But that wasn’t to say that those without money were automatically stricken to poverty. One thing Kagome loved about the time period was the openly active barter system. One could acquire practically anything and everything they needed simply by trading with something of which they had plenty. Their village, for example, grew ample supplies of rice. Much of it was traded for other grains, vegetables, herbs, noodles…as well as non-food items, such as cloth. Granted, the value of rice only went so far, and they could only spare to trade so much, but anything else the village may need, they knew would be provided to them by their resident Lord. Inuyasha appreciated that the villagers still insisted on doing their best at taking care of themselves, just as they always had been doing before he’d come along and taken over, but it was blatantly obvious that the entire village, as a whole, had prospered greatly as of late.
He often did all the hunting, all the fishing, chopped all the wood…but that was only half of it. The stuff they needed that he couldn’t supply for them out of his own forest, such as weapons or tools, Inuyasha traded for with either meat and furs, or sometimes labor. Sure, they were demon slayers for hire, been doing that since the early days, but he also recently helped rebuild a village that had faced a bad fire, and in payment for his time and labor - not to mention the wood required, as well as the food he and Kagome had provided until their own fields were ready for growing once more - they acquired for Kaede’s village two refined blocks of steel ready for forging, as well as a young, strong horse. One fairly well off village actually sought him out once, begging for assistance with ridding their prosperous town of a horrid youkai beetle infestation, and the hanyou was rewarded with two bolts of fine silk, and three of cotton. Not that Inuyasha himself had much use for the fabric, but the humans in his village sure did. Children were always growing, after all, and growing children always needed knew clothes.
Except for Kazuki, of course, whose robes grew with him. His father’s robes. Kazuki wore the remains of his father’s robes. His robes. Robes that had saved his life more times than he could count. He sometimes forgot that the fire-rat ensemble he wore those days had only recently been commissioned by his brother; his original outfit having been all but completely destroyed during the battle with Daikomaru. If Kagome hadn’t shown up when she did - he chuckled at the thought - he may have ended up fighting the tiger-youkai naked. His chuckle was quick to fade as a wave of realization washed over him. Who was he kidding? If Kagome hadn’t shown up when she did, he would be dead. Gazing down at her then, Inuyasha couldn’t help but to smile. Kagme was a picture of purity, laying there in her miko robes. All stretched out on her back, arms folded and tucked behind her head, she gazed up at the stars as though she hadn’t a care in the world, a squirming Kazuki looking ever so much like a miniature version of his father, as he snuggled and fidgeted, trying to find the most comfortable position against his mother’s side.
Inuyasha chuckled again.
A shooting star had just managed to catch his son’s wonder, as he pointed a tiny clawed hand up toward where the streak of light had just been. As Kagome answered the pup’s unasked question regarding what such streaks of light actually were, Inuyasha cocked an ear in their direction, secretly listening to her explanation as well. There were many things he didn’t know, things that he’d never asked Kagome to explain to him, for fear of looking stupid in her eyes. But Kagome seemed to understand perfectly well that her knowledge simply did not exist in that time, and he knew, should he ever express his readiness to listen, that she would happily teach him all that he cared to learn.
“Those stars look like a spoon.” Inuyasha suddenly heard Shippo say in humor, as the kit joined his mother’s star gazing, stretching himself out on his back right beside her.
“Yes, actually.” Kagome answered. “Back in my homeland…” she had gotten in the habit of saying, having learned that you never knew who, or what, may be listening while out in the open like that “…they called those stars the Big Dipper.” she answered.
“Big Dipper?” the kitsune questioned, completely lost. “What’s a dipper?”
“Well…” she thought for a moment, “That’s one term for those really big serving spoons you use to dish up soup.” she explained, since she knew they didn’t have the term “ladle” either.
“So I was right!” he cheered, “It is a spoon!”
“Yes,” Kagome chuckled at Shippo’s antics, “You were right.”
“Where’d that guy go?” he suddenly asked her next.
Thoroughly confused all of a sudden, the miko questioned “Guy? What guy?”
“You know.” the kit insisted, “You told me about him before…” he explained in youthful determination, instantly earning Inuyasha’s attention once more, “Those stars that looked like a man.” he revealed, and Inuyasha released a silent breath.
“You said something about a hunter?” Shippo continued, wishing to jog his mother’s memory.
“Ah.” she answered, remembering now the winter evening Shippo spoke of.
“That constellation is called Orion.” she reminded.
“Orion…” Shippo repeated, having mild difficulty with the strange way Kagome pronounced the R. “What does that mean?”
“Well, actually,” she explained, “That’s his name. Remember, you said those stars looked like a man?” He nodded. “His name is Orion, Orion the Hunter.” Kagome explained.
Glancing around the sky for a moment, Shippo eventually said “I still don’t see him.”
Shaking her head, Kagome explained “That’s because it’s summer, and he’s only visible in the winter.”
“Why?”
“Well, because in the summer, he’s on the other side of the…” She paused, thinking perhaps too much knowledge in the feudal era may not necessarily be a good thing. “…ocean.” she decided on, thinking it best to avoid having to explain how the world was round and revolved around the sun. Let’s save that one for another time, shall we?
Shippo accepted her explanation, answering with a sage-like “Ohhhhhh”
The next thirty minutes or so were spent with Kagome pointing out all of the constellations she could remember, that Shippo hadn’t been able to see that winter evening when Orion’s giant form had first caught his eye. She introduced him to Andromeda, Aquila, and Scorpius, and also pointed out the patterns to several other constellations that she couldn’t remember the names of at the moment, but promised to look up in her astrology book as soon as they went inside. They were both so absorbed in their cosmic game of connect-the-dots that neither noticed how late it was quickly becoming, not even when Kazuki curled himself into a ball against Mommy’s side and fell asleep. Absently, she wrapped a protective arm around her pup, and continued to point out additional stars with her free hand.
Since Kagome couldn’t remember the official names of some of the constellations, Shippo started an amusing game after a moment of renaming the stars whatever he pleased. The fox, Vulpecula, became Shippo, and the greyhounds, Canes Venatici, became Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru, which earned a quiet chuckle from the hanyou who was still listening from his observation perch above them.
“What about that one?” Shippo asked next, pointing to a particular cluster of stars that refused to go unnoticed.
Focusing her vision on where her son’s clawed fingers pointed, Kagome smiled, and answered “Now that one I remember, it’s called Sagittarius.”
“Feh, stupid name.” drifted down to her on the breeze, and she chuckled.
“Sagittarius is an archer.” she continued to explain. “Those stars make up his bow…” she said, raising her hand and tracing the specks of light with her finger.
“If those stars make an archer, then it should be named after you!” Shippo proclaimed proudly, and Kagome was about to say something before the distinct sound of a certain hanyou leaping down out of a certain tree reached her ears.
Coming up to stand right beside her, Kagome had a bizarre view of Inuyasha towering over her until he crouched down to be closer to her level, as she continued to remain upon her back, gazing upward.
“What do you think Otou?” Shippo asked the hanyou smugly, “Think we should name those stars after her?”
“Name the stars after her, huh?” Inuyasha repeated quietly, as though offering genuine contemplation.
“Sure.” the kitsune nodded, “Kagome the archer, instead of Sag…Sagit…whatever.”
Trying not to giggle, Kagome focused most of her attention on the smaller hanyou currently snuggled into her side, who had chosen that particular moment to wake up.
“Hungi” he managed to verbalize behind his ‘hungry’ whimper, as he climbed up into Mommy’s lap, Kagome having sat up as soon as she felt Kazuki stirring.
“They ain’t good enough.” Inuyasha suddenly mumbled, causing Kagome to cock an eyebrow in confused curiosity.
“Who isn’t good enough for what?” she asked, as she opened the fold in her chihaya enough for her pup to find nourishment.
“The stars…” her mate admitted hesitantly, “They ain’t good enough…for you.”
Reaching forward, Inuyasha gently brushed the back of his knuckles across his son’s downy soft ear. Said appendage flicked lightly at the irritation, but otherwise, the pup showed no signs that he’d noticed the distraction, as he focused solely on his late-night meal.
“If those stars are good enough to be named after the fearsome brothers of the fang…” Kagome started teasingly, pointing toward Canes Venatici, “…then why aren’t those stars good enough for me, hmmm?”
“All the stars in the sky combined aren’t good enough for you.” Inuyasha whispered, leaning forward to steel a gentle kiss while their son continued to feed below their heads. “I’m not good enough for you.” he added when he pulled away.
“Yet she mated you anyway.”
“Shippo!” Kagome gasped, her shocked tone surprising Kazuki in turn, who stopped feeding to look around nervously.
“It’s okay…” Inuyasha chuckled, “The kid’s right, after all.” he admitted, tapping his mate gently on the nose with his index finger. “You deserved better.”
“I deserved to get who I wanted…who I loved most in my heart.” the miko scolded playfully.
“Never did see what’s best for her…” Inuyasha mumbled to himself as he stood back up. Sighing in fake resignation, he addressed his adopted son as he said “I suppose she can have those stars then, if she really wants them.”
Kagome just smiled wordlessly, shaking her head in amusement when she finally managed to get Kazuki to once again focus on the food source presented before him. Chuckling quietly, she mused that that was a problem that she never had with Inuyasha - whether it was getting him to notice food…or the particular containers with which she currently carried Kazuki’s food.
“Kagome the Archer.” Shippo said again, pulling his adopted mother from her musings as he nodded his satisfaction with the newly remained constellation.
She looked up just in time to catch Inuyasha glancing at the constellation appreciatively, before his eyes lowered to hers once again. Instead of quickly averting his gaze and getting embarrassed, as what would have been the case before their mating, were a similar situation to have occurred back then, he now instead held his gaze with hers, locking their stare, as he corrected Shippo by stating “Kagome the Miko.”
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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Chapter 76 - Kagome in the Sky with Diamonds
“Picture yourself on a boat in a river…” the future-born miko sang to her young one, often thinking up as many songs as she could remember from her century, as she didn’t know that many from her current era.
Sure, okay…cellophane flowers and rocking horse people didn’t really make a whole lot of sense, but neither did “pure has now become impure” in her book.
Inuyasha smiled at the scene, ignoring the fact that he didn’t understand half of what she was singing about, as he cherished the simple fact that little Kazuki (who got bigger every day) was going to grow up in a happy, steady environment, no matter what. Even if…the gods forbid…something ever happened to him, he knew that Sesshoumaru would make sure that Kagome and their pups were well cared for. His mate would never have to know the turmoil he knew his own mother had faced, having to raise a hanyou child on her own, facing prejudice and persecution from her own family who, though they did not officially cast Izayoi aside, had also offered no assistance when it came to caring for her infant.
Inuyasha’s smile increased when he caught Kazuki’s curious gaze, probably wondering what a turnstile was. Though he didn’t speak very often, yet, he had finally gotten to the point where he could understand the words that were being said around him. A mixed blessing, when you considered Inuyasha’s colorful vocabulary. The adult hanyou did his best to watch what he said, under threat from his mate to reintroduce the rosary’s original function. That unpleasantness aside, though, he was proud of how fast his son was learning. The concept of an actual spoken ‘language’ was foreign to inu, as their native tongue came to them instinctively, and most communication was done through interpretation of body language. But the little guy was getting it, Inuyasha grinned. He said Tou and Kaa and Nii, for identifying himself, as well as Kagome and Shippo. Inuyasha knew they had to break him of simply barking all of the time, or he’d never learn to speak. Then came the fun part, the never-ending questions… He was pretty sure he could handle “Why is the sky blue?” or “How do birds fly?” The one that Inuyasha knew was going to be hard was “What’s a hanyou?” He was going to have to explain to his son why they were different from everyone else. He was also still debating on whether or not to ever explain to Kazuki precisely where, or more accurately, when his mother was from. Did he really need to know that? Perhaps, in a few years, when the youth was old enough to understand the consequences should a truth like that ever become public, he would take the time to explain it to him. After all, Kagome’s knowledge of ‘history’ was going to be playing an intricate part in their future. Surely, Kazuki would one day wonder where Okaa had gotten all of her information from, not to mention those books, as well as all of the other foreign objects from her time that they currently still used. But Inuyasha also knew that he didn’t really need to worry about any of that just yet. In the mean time, the elder hanyou relished in the stability he knew he had secured for his son(s) - Shippo included - that neither pup would ever have to know what it was like to grow up without the comfort of a loving family.
“What’s kaleidoscope eyes?” said kitsune suddenly asked, sitting around the fire with his parents, as dinner was nearly ready.
“Come’ere and I’ll show ya.” Inuyasha told his oldest (Kagome having previously explained it to him), as he proceeded to demonstrate by letting some of his youkai fleck his amber eyes with swirls of crimson.
“Neat!” Shippo squealed, before he proceeded to concentrate, and create a mirrored illusion of the occurrence within his own eyes.
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After receiving word from his half-brother regarding the success of their negotiations in the North, Sesshoumaru pulled Rin aside for one of their rare conversations. Not many words were ever needed between the two, each able to read the other so thoroughly.
“We have allied ourselves with the North.” he stated bluntly. It was direct, and to the point. He would not dishonor her by coddling her mortal emotions on the subject by attempting to shield her from the truth. The Rin he had raised was stronger than that.
“As it should be.” was her response, though something nearly indistinguishable in her eyes managed to catch his attention.
Offering her the rarest of glimpses into his own emotions, that particular one being concern, the Taiyoukai asked her simply “Will this trouble you?”
Puffing out her chest with pride and determination, the human girl stated “It would have troubled me only if they had remained our enemies. As allies we only grow stronger.”
“It is unavoidable that you will one day be in their presence.” he pointed out.
“Many truths of life are unavoidable.” was her cryptic response.
Something was definitely bothering her, though he doubted it was the wolves directly. More like what they represented…her mortality. Of course, Sesshoumaru knew one way in which Rin would be ensured the lifespan of a youkai, but he felt it was best to keep that information from her, for the time being. If she were going to be making decisions soon regarding her future life-mate, he wanted those decisions to be based upon whom she truly wanted in her heart, and nothing else.
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“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely.”
“But…a re you sure?”
“I’ll be fine…” Shippo assured, “We both need the practice.”
“I can always make a barrier, if need be.” Kagome pointed out, miko aura at the ready.
“Well…”
“You know you want to.” the kitsune taunted, transforming himself into a perfect replica of the Taijiya’s husband. “Oh random fair maiden of unquestionable beauty…” he spoke to Kirara, the neko rolling her eyes while Kagome suppressed a giggle, “…would you do me the immeasurable honor of bearing my child?”
“Hiraikotsu!”
“Eep!” ;
Inuyasha, who was currently holding Emi while Kazuki crawled around at his feet, did his best not to laugh outright at the way Shippo attempted to dodge pass after pass of Sango’s giant boomerang. He was right, of course, they both did need the practice. Sango hadn’t swung her weapon in quite some time, and Shippo needed the speed training.
“If only Miroku could have been here to see that.” Inuyasha chuckled more to himself, though Kagome heard him effortlessly. They both wondered how well the ex-monk would have taken Shippo’s rather…creative…method of getting Sango to launch her attack.
Miroku, in the mean time, was currently victim to another form of torment. “The Talk” with Kohaku. The ex-monk had known it was a fool’s hope that the young man would care to open up to his older sister regarding such things. It wasn’t that Kohaku was uneducated in certain areas. That discussion had taken place with his own father, well before Naraku’s attack. But there were certain other things he needed to discus with Miroku…certain ways Kaori made him feel.
“How did you know that Ane-ue was the one?” the teen asked his brother-in-law uneasily.
He knew about Miroku’s past, but he also knew that the ex-monk genuinely loved his older sister, and it was because of his past that he thought that maybe he’d be the one to ask when it came to distinguishing true love from physical lust.
Miroku did his best to explain that true love included physical lust…but also went unfathomably beyond. Choosing his words carefully, he reminded the lad of their previous mission, as he told him honestly that the first time he’d realized he loved Sango, was when he’d realized he would gladly die to protect her. Sure, it was easy for anyone to make such a claim verbally, but when your life actually was on the line, it suddenly brought forth a lucidity that most men lacked when examining their heart. Respectively, Miroku confessed that he first realized that Sango loved him in return, when she’d proclaimed her willingness to die on his behalf. No one had ever done that before, and it had touched him deeply, even if he hadn’t shown it much at the time.
Nodding, Kohaku thought he understood, regrettably remembering the time Miroku spoke of, at Mt. Hakurei. He hadn’t remembered who “that woman” was at the time, but even still, he’d known he wanted to see her to safety. He was glad his Ane-ue had chosen such a fierce, loyal husband.
Kohaku prayed that his and Kaori’s lives were never in danger, but he already knew, should the village ever fall under attack, he would not hesitate to give his life to save hers. They would both be sixteen soon, plenty old enough to marry. Now Kohaku had another question to ask his brother-in-law.
“Can you teach me…how to build a house?”
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With summer well underway, Kagome enjoyed spending most evenings under the stars, lying out by the Goshinboku, while her mate rested within its branches. Sometimes even more so than in her old world, she found life in the feudal era accompanied by a hustle and bustle she hadn’t been expecting. Sure, in one sense, everything was quiet and peaceful, serene and tranquil, and any other synonyms you could think of…but it was also very grueling. In the modern era, most people only had to worry about getting up and going to work, doing some kind of job or another in order to make money, in order to pay bills…lather, rinse, repeat. There, in the feudal era, you had to till your own fields, grow your own crops, hunt your own game, skin your own game (it still made her pale at times), sew your own clothes…the list just went on and on. Grocery store? Ha! Money? Sure, it existed, but that wasn’t to say that most people had any. Money there was something to truly be treasured. Hell…it practically was treasure, the most valuable of coins currently being made from gold.
But that wasn’t to say that those without money were automatically stricken to poverty. One thing Kagome loved about the time period was the openly active barter system. One could acquire practically anything and everything they needed simply by trading with something of which they had plenty. Their village, for example, grew ample supplies of rice. Much of it was traded for other grains, vegetables, herbs, noodles…as well as non-food items, such as cloth. Granted, the value of rice only went so far, and they could only spare to trade so much, but anything else the village may need, they knew would be provided to them by their resident Lord. Inuyasha appreciated that the villagers still insisted on doing their best at taking care of themselves, just as they always had been doing before he’d come along and taken over, but it was blatantly obvious that the entire village, as a whole, had prospered greatly as of late.
He often did all the hunting, all the fishing, chopped all the wood…but that was only half of it. The stuff they needed that he couldn’t supply for them out of his own forest, such as weapons or tools, Inuyasha traded for with either meat and furs, or sometimes labor. Sure, they were demon slayers for hire, been doing that since the early days, but he also recently helped rebuild a village that had faced a bad fire, and in payment for his time and labor - not to mention the wood required, as well as the food he and Kagome had provided until their own fields were ready for growing once more - they acquired for Kaede’s village two refined blocks of steel ready for forging, as well as a young, strong horse. One fairly well off village actually sought him out once, begging for assistance with ridding their prosperous town of a horrid youkai beetle infestation, and the hanyou was rewarded with two bolts of fine silk, and three of cotton. Not that Inuyasha himself had much use for the fabric, but the humans in his village sure did. Children were always growing, after all, and growing children always needed knew clothes.
Except for Kazuki, of course, whose robes grew with him. His father’s robes. Kazuki wore the remains of his father’s robes. His robes. Robes that had saved his life more times than he could count. He sometimes forgot that the fire-rat ensemble he wore those days had only recently been commissioned by his brother; his original outfit having been all but completely destroyed during the battle with Daikomaru. If Kagome hadn’t shown up when she did - he chuckled at the thought - he may have ended up fighting the tiger-youkai naked. His chuckle was quick to fade as a wave of realization washed over him. Who was he kidding? If Kagome hadn’t shown up when she did, he would be dead. Gazing down at her then, Inuyasha couldn’t help but to smile. Kagme was a picture of purity, laying there in her miko robes. All stretched out on her back, arms folded and tucked behind her head, she gazed up at the stars as though she hadn’t a care in the world, a squirming Kazuki looking ever so much like a miniature version of his father, as he snuggled and fidgeted, trying to find the most comfortable position against his mother’s side.
Inuyasha chuckled again.
A shooting star had just managed to catch his son’s wonder, as he pointed a tiny clawed hand up toward where the streak of light had just been. As Kagome answered the pup’s unasked question regarding what such streaks of light actually were, Inuyasha cocked an ear in their direction, secretly listening to her explanation as well. There were many things he didn’t know, things that he’d never asked Kagome to explain to him, for fear of looking stupid in her eyes. But Kagome seemed to understand perfectly well that her knowledge simply did not exist in that time, and he knew, should he ever express his readiness to listen, that she would happily teach him all that he cared to learn.
“Those stars look like a spoon.” Inuyasha suddenly heard Shippo say in humor, as the kit joined his mother’s star gazing, stretching himself out on his back right beside her.
“Yes, actually.” Kagome answered. “Back in my homeland…” she had gotten in the habit of saying, having learned that you never knew who, or what, may be listening while out in the open like that “…they called those stars the Big Dipper.” she answered.
“Big Dipper?” the kitsune questioned, completely lost. “What’s a dipper?”
“Well…” she thought for a moment, “That’s one term for those really big serving spoons you use to dish up soup.” she explained, since she knew they didn’t have the term “ladle” either.
“So I was right!” he cheered, “It is a spoon!”
“Yes,” Kagome chuckled at Shippo’s antics, “You were right.”
“Where’d that guy go?” he suddenly asked her next.
Thoroughly confused all of a sudden, the miko questioned “Guy? What guy?”
“You know.” the kit insisted, “You told me about him before…” he explained in youthful determination, instantly earning Inuyasha’s attention once more, “Those stars that looked like a man.” he revealed, and Inuyasha released a silent breath.
“You said something about a hunter?” Shippo continued, wishing to jog his mother’s memory.
“Ah.” she answered, remembering now the winter evening Shippo spoke of.
“That constellation is called Orion.” she reminded.
“Orion…” Shippo repeated, having mild difficulty with the strange way Kagome pronounced the R. “What does that mean?”
“Well, actually,” she explained, “That’s his name. Remember, you said those stars looked like a man?” He nodded. “His name is Orion, Orion the Hunter.” Kagome explained.
Glancing around the sky for a moment, Shippo eventually said “I still don’t see him.”
Shaking her head, Kagome explained “That’s because it’s summer, and he’s only visible in the winter.”
“Why?”
“Well, because in the summer, he’s on the other side of the…” She paused, thinking perhaps too much knowledge in the feudal era may not necessarily be a good thing. “…ocean.” she decided on, thinking it best to avoid having to explain how the world was round and revolved around the sun. Let’s save that one for another time, shall we?
Shippo accepted her explanation, answering with a sage-like “Ohhhhhh”
The next thirty minutes or so were spent with Kagome pointing out all of the constellations she could remember, that Shippo hadn’t been able to see that winter evening when Orion’s giant form had first caught his eye. She introduced him to Andromeda, Aquila, and Scorpius, and also pointed out the patterns to several other constellations that she couldn’t remember the names of at the moment, but promised to look up in her astrology book as soon as they went inside. They were both so absorbed in their cosmic game of connect-the-dots that neither noticed how late it was quickly becoming, not even when Kazuki curled himself into a ball against Mommy’s side and fell asleep. Absently, she wrapped a protective arm around her pup, and continued to point out additional stars with her free hand.
Since Kagome couldn’t remember the official names of some of the constellations, Shippo started an amusing game after a moment of renaming the stars whatever he pleased. The fox, Vulpecula, became Shippo, and the greyhounds, Canes Venatici, became Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru, which earned a quiet chuckle from the hanyou who was still listening from his observation perch above them.
“What about that one?” Shippo asked next, pointing to a particular cluster of stars that refused to go unnoticed.
Focusing her vision on where her son’s clawed fingers pointed, Kagome smiled, and answered “Now that one I remember, it’s called Sagittarius.”
“Feh, stupid name.” drifted down to her on the breeze, and she chuckled.
“Sagittarius is an archer.” she continued to explain. “Those stars make up his bow…” she said, raising her hand and tracing the specks of light with her finger.
“If those stars make an archer, then it should be named after you!” Shippo proclaimed proudly, and Kagome was about to say something before the distinct sound of a certain hanyou leaping down out of a certain tree reached her ears.
Coming up to stand right beside her, Kagome had a bizarre view of Inuyasha towering over her until he crouched down to be closer to her level, as she continued to remain upon her back, gazing upward.
“What do you think Otou?” Shippo asked the hanyou smugly, “Think we should name those stars after her?”
“Name the stars after her, huh?” Inuyasha repeated quietly, as though offering genuine contemplation.
“Sure.” the kitsune nodded, “Kagome the archer, instead of Sag…Sagit…whatever.”
Trying not to giggle, Kagome focused most of her attention on the smaller hanyou currently snuggled into her side, who had chosen that particular moment to wake up.
“Hungi” he managed to verbalize behind his ‘hungry’ whimper, as he climbed up into Mommy’s lap, Kagome having sat up as soon as she felt Kazuki stirring.
“They ain’t good enough.” Inuyasha suddenly mumbled, causing Kagome to cock an eyebrow in confused curiosity.
“Who isn’t good enough for what?” she asked, as she opened the fold in her chihaya enough for her pup to find nourishment.
“The stars…” her mate admitted hesitantly, “They ain’t good enough…for you.”
Reaching forward, Inuyasha gently brushed the back of his knuckles across his son’s downy soft ear. Said appendage flicked lightly at the irritation, but otherwise, the pup showed no signs that he’d noticed the distraction, as he focused solely on his late-night meal.
“If those stars are good enough to be named after the fearsome brothers of the fang…” Kagome started teasingly, pointing toward Canes Venatici, “…then why aren’t those stars good enough for me, hmmm?”
“All the stars in the sky combined aren’t good enough for you.” Inuyasha whispered, leaning forward to steel a gentle kiss while their son continued to feed below their heads. “I’m not good enough for you.” he added when he pulled away.
“Yet she mated you anyway.”
“Shippo!” Kagome gasped, her shocked tone surprising Kazuki in turn, who stopped feeding to look around nervously.
“It’s okay…” Inuyasha chuckled, “The kid’s right, after all.” he admitted, tapping his mate gently on the nose with his index finger. “You deserved better.”
“I deserved to get who I wanted…who I loved most in my heart.” the miko scolded playfully.
“Never did see what’s best for her…” Inuyasha mumbled to himself as he stood back up. Sighing in fake resignation, he addressed his adopted son as he said “I suppose she can have those stars then, if she really wants them.”
Kagome just smiled wordlessly, shaking her head in amusement when she finally managed to get Kazuki to once again focus on the food source presented before him. Chuckling quietly, she mused that that was a problem that she never had with Inuyasha - whether it was getting him to notice food…or the particular containers with which she currently carried Kazuki’s food.
“Kagome the Archer.” Shippo said again, pulling his adopted mother from her musings as he nodded his satisfaction with the newly remained constellation.
She looked up just in time to catch Inuyasha glancing at the constellation appreciatively, before his eyes lowered to hers once again. Instead of quickly averting his gaze and getting embarrassed, as what would have been the case before their mating, were a similar situation to have occurred back then, he now instead held his gaze with hers, locking their stare, as he corrected Shippo by stating “Kagome the Miko.”