InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Tale Twice Told ❯ A Man of Habit ( Chapter 7 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of  their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. In other words, I don't own and I make no money from this.

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Inuyasha was sipping his coffee and scanning the evening edition of the newspaper, while Myouga was reading out the statement they were going to release to the Press regarding Sesshoumaru’s impending marriage. He rolled his eyes, did it have to sound so pretentious and self-important?

Myouga must have seen the eye movement, or more likely he just knew him well enough, for he lowered the paper he had been reading from to fix him with a stern look. “Really Inuyasha-sama, this is important! Things must be worded just right when we present the news to the fourth estate!”

“Feh, the papers are going to lap it up however it's worded. No need to be so pretentious about it, we're doing enough pretending as it is.”

Myouga sighed, resisting the urge to tear out what little hair he had left. “If we hope to get the press on our side then we must be careful with how we word our announcement. If you hope to win this election then you must learn these things.” He kept his stare fixed on Inuyasha until the young man set aside his paper and gave him his full attention. “Good. Now, back to your brother's impending marriage. The girl is Rin, the daughter of a kindergarten teacher and a data processor. She was a former student of Lord Taishou’s, back when she was studying for her Master’s. They lost touch after she graduated, but in the past week the Lord has resumed contact with her,” Myouga coughed here, “resulting in a whirlwind romance and a sudden proposal for marriage.”

Inuyasha snorted. So far he had deliberately kept himself away from the entire wedding fiasco. But the day had come for him and Kagome to meet the bride-to-be, so he thought a little background information wouldn’t hurt. Of course, he hadn't expected to be roped into working on the press release when he asked Myouga what he knew about the girl.

Surprisingly, Sesshoumaru was reluctant to bring Rin to the mansion as was their family tradition, preferring for the meeting to take place in their pool house. Though Inuyasha supposed he couldn't blame his brother for that, not with what had happened after the last time he brought his intended to the mansion.

Finishing his coffee, Inuyasha got up and stretched, and then looked thoughtfully at his blazers. He was thinking of sporting a more casual look, when he remembered that his style should match with his wife’s.

“Oi, Kagome!” he hollered, “what are you wearing to the poolside?”

He wondered what she was doing in the bathroom for so long. Surely she would have finished bathing a long time ago. The door opened and Kagome emerged a tad apologetically. He noticed that her nose was red, and so were the rims of her eyes.

“I’m sorry Inuyasha, but I have the most terrible headache-”

Inuyasha could barely suppress his smile. Wasn’t that the oldest fake excuse in the world? ‘So that’s how much you want to avoid meeting your rival in love, eh?’

“That sucks! You better go lie down,” he said. He didn’t want to make her uncomfortable by calling her bluff. After making a few solicitous remarks about whether she would be fine by herself (“Of course I will!”) and whether she would excuse his going alone (“Don’t you worry about it!”) he tucked her in, placed a couple aspirin and a glass of water on the table beside the bed and closed the door behind him.

He was still wondering about Kagome’s uncharacteristically childish behaviour when he sat down across the table from Sesshoumaru and Rin. The air was cool and crisp and the lights were subdued in the pool house, giving the water a mysterious, blue tinge. The scent of eucalyptus floated in the air. On any other day, Inuyasha would have felt instantly relaxed. But his present company was too weird for comfort.

The first thing that he had noticed about the girl, Rin, was an aura of genuine happiness. She was a wisp of a girl, with a pretty, round face and warm, brown eyes that shone with adulation when she looked at his older brother, who, when compared to her vivaciousness, looked rather like an ice sculpture. He forced a smile as he greeted her.

“So, you must be the girl who's finally managed to melt my brother's heart,” he said, trying not to wince as the words left his mouth sounding too close to how he had greeted Kagome back when she was Sesshoumaru's intended bride. He hoped he didn't sound as sarcastic as he felt. “How did he manage to land someone as delightful as you?” He turned on the charm to cover his near slip-up.

“Oh I was always in awe of Sesshoumaru-sensei,” Rin gushed in response, a light blush covering her cheeks. “He used to be so silent back then, hardly spoke a word outside of his lecture! We used to be deadly afraid even to ask a question. I must say, when I spoke to him after an entire year I was surprised to learn that he could talk so much!”

Inuyasha almost choked on his beer. Sesshoumaru? Talk? What was his brother trying to pull?

“Really?” he said aloud, the trace of a sneer managing to work its way into his tone.

“Not everyone can bring out that side of me,” Sesshoumaru smiled, or rather bared his teeth, before planting a kiss upon Rin’s waiting lips.

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow. At least Sesshoumaru was trying to give his act the semblance of a real courtship. He did not expect the ambitious Lord to show even this much consideration for the girl’s feelings.

“I keep asking him, there are so many pretty girls out there,” Rin said shyly, “why did you choose me to be your wife? I still can’t believe my luck!”

“I told you that you always had a special place in my heart,” Sesshoumaru put his arm around Rin’s shoulder to pull her close to him, “ever since the very first day that that you walked into my classroom.”

“It’s so mysterious, isn’t it, Inuyasha-sama?” There was an earnest sincerity in the girl’s voice, “all this time both of us were in love with each other, and we never knew!”

“Why don’t you show him the ring?” Sesshoumaru suggested, a bit hurriedly it seemed to Inuyasha. But if his behaviour was suspicious, Rin was oblivious to it. With a smile that seemed to light up the night, she extended her hand that bore a glittering diamond ring. Inuyasha knew he had to compliment the ring or else the girl would take offence.

“It’s absolutely wonderful,” he said with a somewhat strained smile.

“Don’t you recognize it?” the girl seemed astonished, “It is your grandmother’s ring!”

Inuyasha frowned. As far as he knew, his grandmother’s ring now belonged to Kagome. Sesshoumaru had slipped it on her finger back when he had proposed to her.

“Myouga-sama said the elder Taishou always proposes with this ring,” Rin explained.

‘Then why didn’t he ask for the ring from Kagome?’ Inuyasha would have heard about it if he had, would have seen the results as Kagome collapsed even further into herself. He supposed that Sesshoumaru could have simply retrieved it without saying anything but, unless he was mistaken, this ring did not appear to be the same one that had been placed on Kagome's finger what seemed like an eternity ago. So why would Rin believe it was? Unless-

Inuyasha shifted uneasily, his eyes flicking to his brother's impassive face as a logical explanation occurred to him.

-unless Sesshoumaru considered his engagement to Kagome to be the real thing. At once, he could put the whole thing into perspective. This engagement was a fake, just like the ring was, just like the marriage was going to be.

Inuyasha wondered what would happen to this frank, happy girl once she came face to face with the enormity of the deceit that was being perpetrated upon her. Would she smile then as she was smiling now? Would her eyes hold the same light as the present or would it dim and die out, become as glazed and jaded as his brother’s? Such a bright soul, but soon she would be hunted down like an animal. A wave of revulsion soared through his heart at the very thought of it. His eyes must have belied his true feelings, for when they met his brother’s, the latter silenced him with a warning glance.

After dinner and a round of goodbyes, Sesshoumaru left to drive Rin home while Inuyasha made his way back up to the mansion and then to his bedroom. He had expected Kagome to be asleep and was mildly surprised to see her sitting up in the bed, surfing the television. As he entered, she raised a questioning glance at him.

“How is she?” she whispered in a tremulous voice.

“Seems like a good person,” Inuyasha decided to keep his reply as close to neutral as he could.

Kagome bit her lower lip. Inuyasha could see her hesitation – for her next question was going to reveal her jealousy about another man. He sat down on the bed and caressed her cheek, to demonstrate his support and love for her. It achieved the opposite result. She froze instantly and inched away from him like his very touch was polluted. Her action stung Inuyasha, but, ignoring his instinct to withdraw into his own shell, he waited, allowing her to regain her composure. At length she breathed deeply and looked at him.

“Is she pretty?” she struggled to keep the bitterness out of her voice.

“I’m afraid she is.” Inuyasha couldn’t lie. They would meet during the wedding anyway.

“I see.”

Inuyasha was alarmed to see Kagome become sadder than before, as she drew up her knees and rested her chin above them. He knew his words were responsible for it. Now he needed to do some damage control. He thought frantically for a moment before he made up his mind.

“Get dressed, we're going out,” he ordered.

The girl looked up, surprised. “At this hour?”

“Yeah, you have five minutes so get off your ass right now.”

Kagome looked like she might protest, but then she seemed to think the better of it. She rose obediently and slipped into jeans and a top.

“Now tell me, where do you want me to take you?” Inuyasha asked her as they got inside the car.

“I thought you knew where you were going.” She looked at him, puzzled.

‘I wish I did.’

“Oh I do,” he said aloud. “I’m going where you wish to be at this very moment. Do you want to visit Jii-chan and Mama?”

Kagome thought for a while and shook her head. “I’d rather not. While a visit with Mama would be nice,” she said a bit wistfully, “I’m still too mad at Jii-chan.” She looked at her husband anxiously, but Inuyasha nodded understandingly.

He was also pretty mad at Jii-chan, though he made a mental note to see about having Mama, as she had told him to call her at their wedding, drop by the mansion for a visit. Perhaps that would help lift Kagome's spirits as the wedding drew closer. He quickly tried to think of something else that would cheer her up at the present moment.

“Want to go for ice cream?” he suggested out of the blue.

Kagome considered for a bit. Then her face lit up. “Only if you treat me to Ben & Jerry’s New York Super Fudge Chunk.”

“Now we’re talking!” Inuyasha gave her a bright grin and started the car.

After a ten-minute drive they arrived at the nearest outlet of Ben & Jerry’s but it was quite late at night and the shop was closed. Kagome sighed.

“I guess today isn’t my lucky day after all,” she said with a faltering smile.

Inuyasha looked at her. He felt a twist of pain, and an urge to remove all sorrow from the heart of the woman beside him. He didn’t care if it started with something as simple as treating her to her favorite ice cream. Step by step he would help her get through this mess and heal her wounds.

“C’mon!” he said encouragingly, “you can’t give up so easily! If one door closes another will open.”

But it seemed that Inuyasha proposes and God disposes. After a two-hour drive around the city they were back to square one. It seemed as though every shop in the city had pulled down their shutters.

“I told you, not my lucky day at all.” Kagome gave him a resigned smile that almost broke his heart. “We should just go home.”

“No! I promised you ice cream, and I always keep my promises.” Inuyasha thought for a while, and then pulled out his cell-phone and dialed a number. Kagome looked at him quizzically as he spoke in a strange dialect. After a short while, he turned the car around and sped away towards his favourite bakery.

The lights of the shop went on as Inuyasha finished parking his car. The shutters went up. Toutousai peered out of the door.

“Inuyasha? At this hour?”

“Sorry to bother you old man,” Inuyasha apologized before pulling Kagome forward to introduce her to the octogenarian, “this is my wife, Kagome. Kagome, this is Toutousai, my great-uncle from Ofukuro’s side.”

Toutousai frowned. “You remember your great-uncle only in times of need, eh? Why was I not invited to the wedding?”

“Because you were out of the city and rudely refused to return?” Inuyasha suggested.

“Ah, right, quite right. It’s so difficult to keep track of things these days. Well, I’m glad you decided to make an honest woman of her.”

“Say, what?” Inuyasha barked.

“Isn’t she the harlot who used to cling to your arm while you strutted around like a peacock all over the place? This Kagura?”

Kagome glared at Inuyasha.

“She’s not Kagura, she’s Kagome,” Inuyasha hurriedly explained. “Ka-go-me. And that’s my brother you are talking about.”

“Quite right,” Toutousai replied as he hobbled back into the shop. “So, what does this one want?”

Inuyasha gave Kagome an apologetic glance. “I’m sorry, normally my cousin runs this shop but he’s out of town today.”

She brushed aside his apology, and with a smile, went forward and extended her hand.

“Hello Jii-san, I’m so pleased to meet you.”

The old man peered at her suspiciously through curtains of cataracts. After a long glance, he broke into a happy smile and took her hand in his.

“Pleased to meet you too, m’dear. Good choice, Inuyasha.”

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. “Just give us the ice cream already, we need to go back.”

Kagome looked at him reproachfully before looking at Toutousai again.

“Jii-san, can I ask you something?”

“Ask me?” the old man’s face lit up with delight. “Nobody asks me anything. Go on!”

“You must have known my mother-in-law…Inuyasha’s mother?”

Inuyasha was surprised. Why did Kagome want to know about his mother? His roots, his origin?

“Izayoi?” The old man’s face became tender with affection. “She was the most beautiful girl in our little community. Sweet as sugar she was, and innocent as the babe unborn. Had the face of a princess and the heart of gold, we used to say. She was destined for great things in life…yes she was!”

Inuyasha looked at Kagome only to detect a trace of a smile hanging on her lips. Was she proud of his mother? Toutousai’s words held little interest for him; he had heard him speak about his mother since he was a boy. But his eyes were captured by the way Kagome listened with rapt attention to his great-uncle’s eulogy, her eyes shining with mysterious hues, the soft lights of the bakery playing strange highlights on her hair, the way she absently smoothed her wayward curls, the subdued lilts of her laughter at one funny anecdote.

“This one here,” Toutousai raised a shaking finger in Inuyasha's direction, “has got his mother’s heart. But we didn’t keep him with us, you see, because he would have come.”

“He? Who?” Kagome asked.

Toutousai’s eyes glazed over. “Was that your child in the car?”

Kagome was looking perplexed. Inuyasha made an impatient grunt and went to the fridge himself. Minutes later he and Kagome were back inside the car, with a tub of ice cream sitting between them.

“I’m sorry but the old geezer is really senile,” he apologized, feeling embarrassed by the antics of his relative. But Kagome didn’t look offended. ‘That’s a relief,’ he thought.

“It’s okay, I didn’t mind,” the girl smiled at him, making his heart skip a beat. “In fact I’m glad I got to meet him. And you have cousins? Why haven’t you introduced me to them yet?”

Inuyasha felt the heat rising to his cheeks. “Mother and Sesshoumaru think that Ofukuro’s family is beneath them. Nobody has stopped me from hanging out with them, but from my childhood I knew that it was frowned upon,” he smiled as he remembered his own obstinacy. “But I still meet them on the sly. Almost everyday I stop by their shop to buy pastries and have a chat with them.”

Kagome shook her head. “That still doesn’t explain why you didn’t introduce me to them.”

Inuyasha stared at Kagome like she was insane. Wasn’t the reason pretty obvious?

“You are the Higurashi heiress, you were going to marry the present Lord Taishou – you are so out of our league.” He didn't even realize he had included himself in his statement.

Now the girl stared at him as if he was insane.

“Inuyasha, I’m their family now.”

Family? Kagome considered him as family? She thought she belonged to a side of him that had no connection with Sesshoumaru?

“Oh!” Kagome suddenly exclaimed, startling him out of his thoughts, “what did Toutousai-jiisan mean by ‘he would have come’?”

Inuyasha shook his head. “Dunno. Maybe he meant Ryuukossei. He wanted to kill us all, you see. But if I were you I wouldn’t think much about his words. His brain is awfully jumbled up.”

Kagome nodded uncertainly.

“C'mon,” Inuyasha said as he started the car again. “We've got to hurry if we don't want the ice cream to melt. I know the perfect place to eat it.”

To Kagome's confusion, he drove back to the mansion. But upon parking the car, he pulled her away from the house, toward the eucalyptus trees that lined the property. The full moon was shining through the grove, turning the fallen leaves into a heap of silver that crisply crumbled under their feet. He gently grasped her hand and led her down the familiar trail and up a knoll. He grinned as he heard her gasp beside him at the view.

“It's beautiful,” she murmured as she stared at the grassy expanse below them.

“Yeah, it is,” he agreed, his eyes locked onto her face as she stared in awe. Not for him was the lethal beauty of the moonlight, the shadow of the winking stars, the susurration of the cool night breeze through the lush verdure that stretched as far as the eyes would go. She was more bewitching, more enthralling than the night; more ethereal than the mercury moon, more fragrant than honey and heather, and more sacred than an altar. Fire tinged the distant moon; he shivered as though with a slight fever; his glance glided over her face, then fell prostrate at her feet, blinded by her perfect beauty. After a moment he sighed and spread his jumper on the grass for her to sit.

They sat there, sharing the tub of ice cream between them. Kagome continued to stare around them. But Inuyasha found his eyes kept being drawn back to the girl's face as he shared stories about this spot, his spot. It was his special place; when he was young he used to hide here and wait for someone to come looking for him. But nobody ever did. As he grew up, it became his happy place, where he went when he needed to be alone or to calm down after a troubling day.

Inuyasha grinned as he told her about it. “I've just always loved nature. And this spot is full of nature, I've always felt at peace here.” He grinned sheepishly. “Sorry about the seating, I've never had to share this place with anyone before.”

Kagome's eyes had shot to him at that before she had looked away, perhaps feeling a bit uncomfortable at his confession. Or was she wondering why he had decided to share his special spot with her?

As they slipped into their night clothes and went to bed that night, Inuyasha stayed awake for a long time pondering over the events of the night. Kagome had met his great-uncle, talked to him, asked about his mother, had all but declared that she belonged to him, exclusively, quite apart from the Taishous. Had she started to accept him as her husband? The possibility opened up a roseate world of hope and promises before his eyes – he and Kagome living as man and wife, going for vacations by the beach, cuddling in that cabin on the mountains – this time for a real honeymoon, and maybe, in a couple of years’ time, the pitter-patter of small feet around the house. Inuyasha smiled to himself at the thought, before sighing and chiding his imagination for going into overdrive. 'For any of that to happen, she would have to want my touch. Something she clearly doesn't,' he thought, remembering the look on her face as she flinched away earlier.

But despite that, things were improving between them, weren't they? Hadn't she come with him without explanation, put up with his great-uncle's antics and even asked about his mother? Wasn't that proof that there was still hope for them?

A dry sob beside him jerked him out of his reverie. He looked to Kagome in alarm, but saw that she was crying in her sleep. He reached out to wake her up, but then decided against it. If he woke her up, she would be embarrassed and deny that she was crying, and then go back to whatever nightmares were tormenting her. What he really needed to do was to chase those nightmares away for good, to calm her spirit and let her know that he would always be there by her side.

He slipped his hand under her neck and gently drew her to himself. As he pulled her closer Kagome turned in her sleep, facing towards him. As he moved even closer so that they were both now lying in the center of the bed instead of on opposite sides, her hands rose to clutch at his shirt as she buried her face in his chest. He froze a moment before ascertaining that she was still fast asleep, then lifted one hand to the back of her head in a soothing gesture and offered whatever comfort he could. He ran his fingers through her hair, shushing her, placing gentle kisses on her forehead, wiping the tears that slid out of her closed eyelids. As he comforted her, he felt strangely calm and serene – almost blissful. Before long, Kagome’s sobs had quieted as she fell into a deeper slumber. Inuyasha smiled down at her as his arms tightened protectively around her back. A moment later he was also asleep.

The first golden rays of the sun fell on his face as he awakened. Immediately he was awash with the feeling of something warm and wonderful wrapped around him, permeating all his senses at once. For the first time in years he felt utterly at peace and thoroughly happy with the world. His whole life, the campaign, none of it meant a thing if he could have just a few more hours with this glorious sensation.

As rationality seeped in through his sleep-addled mind, he realized the source of the brilliant comfort to be none other than Kagome clinging to him in her sleep. Then he was faced with a dilemma. On the one hand, it broke his heart to let go of her. On the other, he was afraid that when she woke up, she would reject his touch like she had the night before, or accuse him of taking advantage of her. He did not wish to break the delicate bond of trust that was developing between them. Gently, he shifted her and laid her back on her side of the bed before moving away, all the while longing, praying for the day when she would willingly lie in his arms.

That night her sleep was again interrupted with tears and again he gave into the temptation to comfort her in her sleep. When he awoke in the morning, again he rolled away from her before she could awaken herself.

Before he realized, it had become a habit for him, one he didn't think he could break nor did he want to.