InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Lies, Letters, and Calloused Fingertips. ❯ Intermission: He Really Loved Her, You Know. ( Chapter 7 )

A/N: So, here it is, the extremely long-awaited intermission! Yay! Grab a pillow and some popcorn, folks, and git comfy. This one's a long one.

 

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha and co. Only Rumiko Takahashi does. Hellogoodbye is the owner of the wonderful song that is included in this chapter, “Two Weeks in Hawaii,” and I don't make any money from any of the smutty smut Mcsmut smut. Haha.

 

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Lies, Letters, and Calloused Fingertips.

 

Intermission: He Really Loved Her, You Know.

 

As the cars and trees and buildings passed the tinted windows of Inuyasha Taisho's black town car, barely blurred, he sighed, thinking back to earlier that morning. Rin had all but cornered him, he knew, but she'd had a very good reason for it. It was only two days since his birthday; Inuyasha honestly had no idea how old he was anymore, but his sister-in-law had a penchant for remembering everybody's birthday and giving them presents to celebrate the occasion.

 

Leaning back as he realized that the town car was pulling up to its destination, Inuyasha knew that it was more than possible that his sister had just given him the greatest birthday gift he could ever hope to receive.

 

His nephews obviously didn't understand the overwhelming significance of a single, short newspaper clipping, a simple birth announcement, but his nieces and their parents knew. The name was typed at the top of the clipping in clean, bold letters, slightly larger than the rest:

 

KAGOME AYAKO HIGURASHI

 

As the car slowed to a stop, Inuyasha mused, `How funny. We have the same springtime birthday.'

 

You've got your airplane

And I've got the plain air of here,

You're gone

And I've gone insane.

Oh when will you reappear?

I'm just some new kid

Who can't get his mind off of you

And I know that it's stupid.

 

He decided to wait the extra time and let the driver shut off the engine and come around to open the door for him; Inuyasha used this time, however short it may be, to attempt at collecting his bearings. When the driver opened his door with a quiet “pop!” and the hanyou slid out of the backseat, his stomach churned uncomfortably and butterflies ran rampant in his chest.

 

After waiting literally centuries for this day, Inuyasha wasn't quite sure that he was ready for it.

 

`Cause you've got Hawaii

And I've gotten no letters from you.

I should stop whining

`Cause it's only been a day or two…

I don't know what you did

But you got me to fall for you.

I know that it's stupid.

 

It was a long walk up the familiar, steep steps of the Sunset Shrine; a strong wave of nostalgia flooded Inuyasha's senses as he passed underneath the large, red torii, spying the small family house quite easily. As he approached the front door of the meager abode he remember so vividly, Inuyasha also spotted the simple shack of a well house at the back of the property. With hands stuffed deep into his slack's pockets, he turned slightly; the Goshinboku was not that far from where he stood, either.

 

He stood here, in this startlingly familiar place, and Inuyasha felt so… at home. Even at the Western Palace with Rin, Fluffy, and their pups, he'd never felt this much at peace.

 

This Higurashis were his saviors and his damnation.

 

Your family's rad and I

Wish that they were here today,

But they're thousands and thousand

Of miles away.

I felt so bad when your mom

Caught us eating ice cream in

Your room at three in the morning…

 

A single image filled Inuyasha's head right then, forcing him to pause, his closed fist raised and ready to knock on the Higurashis' front door. His hand dropped to his side, and he turned around slowly, holding his breath.

 

It was like yesterday. There she stood, on a stone walkway that had yet to be paved. Snow was gathered everywhere on the ground and grass, and it was falling on her and around her. `What a sight for sore eyes,' he thought, a hint of a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

 

He didn't care that she wasn't really standing there; all he could focus on was the growing feeling of pride and happiness in his chest at the sight of her big, bright smile, the sound of her happy laughter. Her warm eyes sparkled as she stood there, on the walkway, wearing the rarely seen white tennis shoes instead of the black loafers; the skinny blue jeans instead of the green, pleated miniskirt that had become her trademark in his mind's eye; the red baby tee and her puffy, pink jacket with the faux white feathers lining the puffy hood. The hood was down, hung stiffly between her shoulderblades. Snow was collecting in her long, wavy hair, white breaking up the black.

 

She stopped, her feet digging neat, little holes in the thick snow. She twisted her torso around lithely, grinning excitedly at him over her shoulder. “Come on, Inuyasha!” she called out to him. “The snow won't kill ya!”

 

Her comment made him turn a little red; he stuffed his hand into his pockets and answered gruffly, “Keh! I know that, woman!”

 

Suddenly, there was a slight cracking noise behind him; the walkway, the snow, and the bright, silly girl in the pink jacket all disappeared, and Inuyasha whirled around to come face to face with a pretty young woman that he barely recognized.

 

`Cause I'd hate for her

To not want me around her daughter

`Cause my heart stops

Every time…

 

She was very familiar to him, Mrs. Higurashi, and Inuyasha faintly realized that he'd actually missed her quite a bit. She'd been very close to a second mother to him, always reminding him of his own haha with her sweet, motherly ways.

 

Mrs. Higurashi was very surprised to find this tall, black-haired, violet-eyed young man in a grey suit standing on her front doorstep, he knew; her mahogany eyes were wide, and she politely cleared her throat before greeting him with a nice, “Konnichiwa, sir. I am Higurashi Saiyuri, lady of the house. To what do I owe this honor?”

 

Inuyasha took in a deep breath. “Konnichiwa, Higurashi-sama. I am an old friend of your honored husband's. I just wished to drop by and give Sachi-san my congratulations and your new daughter my blessings. My name is Taisho Inuyasha.”

 

Her eyes widened at the name; Sachi had obviously mentioned him before. “Of course, Inuyasha-sama,” the housewife said in a quiet voice, bowing very politely at the waist before stepping out of the doorway. Inuyasha bowed back before entering the domicile.

 

You've got Polaroid

And you even know how to rhyme.

I'd be overjoyed

If we could just hang out sometime

I don't know what you did,

But you got me to fall for you

And I know that it's stupid.

 

Inuyasha wasn't sure he could believe his eyes; the inside of the place was exactly the same as he remembered it - which would be about fifteen years in the future. The only difference he could spot had to be the mostly bare walls; in fifteen years, Inuyasha knew, the walls would be lined with framed photo after framed photo.

 

The hanyou sniffed a little. “Where is my old friend Sachi?” he asked Mrs. Higurashi. He looked around at the room a moment before letting his violet eyes settle on her. The woman blinked at him before answering, “Away on business, I'm afraid. He won't be back for another couple of days.”

 

Inuyasha was puzzled by this. “He couldn't get out of it?”

 

But you know that I try…

 

Mrs. Higurashi shook her head, smiling gently at Inuyasha. “You know how things work in the business world, Inuyasha-sama. He assured me that he would only be gone for a week; besides, his father very honorably stayed here with me, taking care of me at the end of my pregnancy.”

 

Inuyasha smirked when she mentioned her father-in-law; it was strange to know that he'd actually missed the old kook too. “Speaking of Sachi's chichi, how is the crazy old man?”

 

The woman laughed lightly, covering her mouth with her hand in an effort to be more respectful. “Oh, Inuyasha-sama!” As her chuckling subsided, she answered, still smiling, “He's still somewhat miffed at Sachi for becoming a businessman instead of a priest. He's always going on about the `generations of Higurashi men who have been priests!'” Mrs. Higurashi dropped her hand right then, revealing that bright smile that Inuyasha hadn't seen in centuries. He couldn't help but smile back.

 

Mrs. Higurashi started on toward the staircase; chatting on about her father-in-law's hilarious exploits and half-crazed rants, she led him up the stairs and down the hall to a door that he only knew so well. Inuyasha had to take a moment to curb the impulse to knock, as he had grown accustomed to doing when he was great deal younger. Instead, he waited patiently while Mrs. Higurashi, who was still smiling, quietly turned the brass doorknob and pushed open the door.

 

The hanyou sighed contentedly when he saw that the entire nursery was done in salmons and whites. `Not exactly what I remember, obviously,' he thought, following the new mother into the room, `but at least it's her favorite color.' There was a pink and white lace bassinet in the far corner of the room; the cherry wood crib was where the twin bed was supposed to be in the future. The Higurashis had set up a nice, cherry wood changing table against the far wall, beside the window. A number of toys and stuffed animals littered the floor and the crib; a majority of the dolls and teddy bears were collected in the corner directly to Inuyasha's left, just inside the door.

 

With wide, violet eyes focused eagerly on the pink bassinet, Inuyasha stepped forward.

 

Your drawing's rad and I

Put it on my wall and I

Made sure it wouldn't fall

`Cause if it did…

 

She was beautiful; that was all Inuyasha could think, and he was even more amazed when Mrs. Higurashi offered to let him hold her.

 

So there he sat, in the Higurashis' family room downstairs, on the comfy loveseat, cherishing the tiny, gurgling otome in his arms. He could hear Mrs. Higurashi bustling about in the kitchen, doing dishes and preparing the table and counter for dinner.

 

Inuyasha stroked the baby's soft cheek; she yawned, grasped a lock of his long, midnight hair in her tiny, chubby fist. The inuhanyou bit back a chuckle as tears - happy tears - welled up in his eyes. He leaned his head down, his nose meeting the top of her head, and he took a deep breath, thanking the Kamis that the concealment spell never took from him his keen sense of smell.

 

The otome smelled absolutely wonderful. `Not quite like flowers yet,' he mused, sitting back in the seat and smiling, `but we'll get there.'

 

After what only seemed to Inuyasha to be a few more seconds, Mrs. Higurashi came in the room and politely asked him to stay for dinner. Respectfully, he declined; reluctantly, he handed the otome back to Mrs. Higurashi, who went to put her back in the bassinet before seeing her guest to the door.

 

As Inuyasha got into the town car that was waiting for him at the street and pulled away from the Sunset Shrine, he couldn't stop thinking about Kagome.

 

Still wondering how that sweet, small child turned into the beautiful, strong, good onna he had mated, Inuyasha sighed. “If you want a life without me, Kagome,” he said to empty air, “then I'll give it to you. No matter how hard it is for me to let you go, I promise that I'll give you what you want.”

 

My straw wrapper might tear

And there would be no knot and I

Would feel like I'd been shot

Right through the heart.

And I'd fall

Apart but I'd remember how

My heart stops

Every time…

 

He'd read about it in the paper; he asked Rin to cut out the clipping for him. At the end of that horrible, horrible day, Inuyasha had put that clipping alongside the one he already kept hidden in his secret chest Sesshomaru had given him. Smiling faintly as he read over the wrinkled birth announcement once more, his expression quickly turned grim once his eyes caught the large, alarmingly bold words of the other clipping's headline: NO SURVIVORS IN CRASH NEAR OSAKA

 

It was inevitable, he knew; Kagome had told him more than once that her honored father had passed away when his plane crashed near Osaka; he'd been coming home from yet another of his business trips. Sachi's daughter was only three, and his son Souta had just been born.

 

Inuyasha shook his head as he continued to think on the crash later that night. Somehow, in the past few centuries, he'd gotten a bit rusty at climbing trees; nevertheless, he still managed to successfully scale the large oak tree right outside little Kagome's bedroom window.

 

The next morning, he watched from afar as the grieving toddler found the stuffed white dog named Sachi on her windowsill. She smiled happily and crushed it to her in a loving hug; Inuyasha smiled and walked away.

 

You are so special

I just hope that we can be friends.

I'll wait forever,

But I guess that it all depends

On you and yours,

So come on and dance with me

`Cause you are so special…

 

He blinked as he smiled, watching from deep inside the forest as Kagome, now a tall, gorgeous sixteen year old girl, tried to lug her ridiculously enormous yellow bag across the courtyard to the well house. The thing was filled right to the brim with food, clothes, and first aid equipment.

 

“Hurry it up, will ya!” he heard his younger self chide the girl; Inuyasha's smile disappeared, and he rolled his eyes at himself. “Help her with the damned bag, you ass,” he whispered at the scene, sighing and shaking his head at his own youthful arrogance.

 

Right then, he saw himself zip forward, dressed in his old, red fire-rat, and swing the gigantic bag onto his back. “Here,” the younger hanyou said, wrapping an arm around Kagome and disappearing into the well house. The small shack filled with the familiar, ominous purple light as Inuyasha entered the small courtyard behind the Higurashis' home. Mrs. Higurashi stood in the back doorway, smiling and drying off a dish with a towel.

 

“Well, hello, son-in-law,” she greeted the aged hanyou.

 

Hands stuffed deep in his jeans pockets, Inuyasha smiled meekly. Rubbing the back of his head, he let his concealment drop, murmuring, “Keh,” sheepishly. His black hair slowly turned silver; his violet eyes lightened until they were their usual, bright amber. His fangs reappeared, and his white koinu ears popped suddenly out of his thick hair. He chuckled at Mrs. Higurashi's surprised face. “I always did wonder why you always said that Kagome and I would be together. You already knew, didn't you?”

 

The woman gave him and secret smile and just kept drying; she turned and went back inside. Inuyasha took one last look at the well house before disappearing as a blur into the bustling streets of Tokyo.

 

I hope that this makes you smile

And you might stay that way for a while

`Cause you deserve every grin that you get

And you'll get `em a lot from me,

Uh ho, uh ho!

 

“Look here, Kagome! You ain't goin' nowhere without me! For the next nine fuckin' months, you an' me'll be joined at the fuckin' hip!”

 

“Inuyasha! You are such a jerk! I need to go back and let Mama, Souta, and Grampa know by myself.” She sighed as she continued walking. “I'll only be gone for the afternoon; I'll even pick up some Ramen for you.”

 

“I'll go with you -!”

 

“No, you won't.”

 

“Yes, I will!”

 

“No, you won't!”

 

The young hanyou growled. “Dammit, wench! Shut your fuckin' trap and lemme go with you!”

 

“Oh, yea, Inuyasha, that's really persuade me! Curse at me and call me a wench!”

 

“Well, would you prefer bitch?”

 

The resulting slap echoed through the vast forest. Back in the village, Shippo was lounging with Miroku, while Sango was nearby, talking to a village woman. The two males' heads jerked up at the sound of the slap, which resonated from the center of the forest, close to the Bone Eater's Well.

 

“Wow,” Shippo said quietly, struck somewhat in awe. He looked up at Miroku, who was staring, violet eyes wide, into the dark woods surrounding the village. “I've never even heard Sango slap you that hard.”

 

“And I've never heard or seen Kagome slap Inuyasha at all,” Miroku commented, thoroughly puzzled by the turn of events.

 

Shippo jumped to his feet. “Yea! She usually sits him. That must mean he said something really bad, huh?”

 

Miroku blinked. “I don't know, Shippo. Inuyasha has said some pretty brutal things to Kagome before, and she's never reacted so strongly as to slap him.”

 

“Maybe it has something to do with her funny scent…” Shippo pondered, watching the monk.

 

“What funny scent?”

 

“Kagome's been smelling kinda strange lately…”

 

Miroku suddenly started chuckling. “That explains it,” he murmured, shaking his head. “Inuyasha's spiking need to protect her; Kagome's sudden mood swings and sickness in the mornings… It all makes sense now.” He sat back, obviously pleased with himself. “Kagome is pregnant.”

 

Back in the forest, Inuyasha was standing close to the well; he and Kagome stared at one another, both appalled at themselves for their actions.

 

“I'm sorry -” Kagome started, looking away, but her mate grabbed her shoulders.

 

“No! Stop that!” He crushed her to him in a heartbreaking embrace.

 

“Why can't you for once treat me like you'll never see me again?” she whispered.

 

Inuyasha pulled back to look at her. “But I am,” he murmured, watching her closely. “You really think that if you were leaving me for good that I would be nice about it? That I would just cherish what little time if left and then… I would just let you go?” He pulled her closer again. “Fuck no! I would fight like hell to keep you here. With me.”

 

They were silent for a minute; then Shippo came bursting through the foliage. “Inuyasha, Inuyasha! Come quickly! The village is being attacked again! Please! Come help!” The hanyou whirled around, facing Kagome again. “Go through the well without me,” he told her firmly.

 

She gave him a horrified look. “No! I'm not leaving you to do this alone! I can go later!”

 

Inuyasha growled at her again, trying his hardest to make her submit. “Dammit, Kagome! That's my pup in there, and I'll be damned if you lose it in some stupid fight!”

 

“But, Inuyasha -!”

 

“No but's, dammit, woman! Get to your mother's; it's safer there. Get everything you need and do what you gottta do. I'll come get you when it's all clear.” Before she turned away, he grabbed both sides of her face and pulled her into a passionate, lingering kiss. Then he and Shippo took off into the forest to help Miroku and Sango dispatch the attacking youkai and save the village.

 

For a few moments longer, Kagome stood in the clearing, staring at the well. Her mind was already made up, but she hated to make Inuyasha angry. Yanking her bow off her bag and setting it with an arrow, she ran into the forest, hurrying in the direction of the village. She made it there after only a few minutes of running - and she arrived right in the middle of the complete chaos. Most of the villagers were nowhere to be found; she knew that they must have hidden themselves away somewhere. Countless villagers - men, women, and children alike - lay, dead, on the ground, their bodies being torn and ravaged and eaten by the lesser demons.

 

Taking a deep breath, she strung the arrow tight, taking aim at the nearest group of youkai. Her body lit up with its usual pink light as she charged the arrow with her intense spiritual energy. Somehow, ever since she'd gotten pregnant, her powers had grown drastically in strength and intensity. She released the spiritually charged weapon; it struck its mark perfectly, disintegrating them instantly. “Yes!” she cried out, pumping her fist in the air in victory.

 

“Kagome!”

 

Hearing Inuyasha's desperate, almost terrified call, Kagome whipped around - only to be thrown backwards by a large rat youkai. Her back collided with the dirt hard, and the youkai snarled in her face before its giant paw slammed down roughly on her leg. The pain was excruciating, and Kagome bit out a shrill scream.

 

“Kaze no Kizu!”

 

The rat shrieked loudly, turning to face Inuyasha instead. As the fight raged on, Kagome dragged herself away from the scene, hiding in the thick underbrush of the forest. After the rat youkai was dead, her hanyou mate found her again. He swooped down, gathering her up in his arms and running at full speed through the woods with her. Once they reached the clearing, Inuyasha set her down gently on her own feet.

 

“How's your leg?” he asked her quietly.

 

“It's okay,” she mumbled, rubbing it.

 

“Good. Now go to your damn mother's house, you stubborn fucking bitch!” he yelled, thoroughly pissed off.

 

“But, Inuyasha, I wanna help -!”

 

“No, goddammit! Just go home! Just fucking go home! I don't need your fucking help! I can fight my own fucking battles without you! Get the fuck outta here!”

 

Unexpected tears welled up in the Miko's eyes, and she pushed her mate away. He stumbled backward, staring, open-mouthed and startled, at her. She glowered at Inuyasha; sitting on the side of the well and swinging her legs over, she murmured, still glaring at him, “Goodbye, Inuyasha.” She jumped in, the purple light sending her home, and Inuyasha hurried back to the village to finish the fight, completely unaware that Kagome wouldn't be returning to the Sengoku Jidai.

 

You are so special

I just hope that we can be friends.

I'll wait forever,

But I guess that it all depends

 

Mrs. Higurashi was beside herself; she honestly didn't have the faintest idea what to do in this situation. Her daughter had just returned home from the Sengoku Jidai two weeks before; the girl was in tears, and Kagome had relayed the entire story to her mother at they sat at the kitchen table. Mrs. Higurashi had somehow managed to stay calm throughout the entire ordeal that night; on the inside, though, she'd been jumping for joy at the thought of having a koinu-eared grandchild.

 

Now, here they sat, at the doctor's office only two weeks after receiving this wonderful news; the well had been closed when Kagome tried to go back the next morning. She'd been completely heartbroken, her mother knew, and now they were receiving more bad news from their family physician. In a calm, regretful tone, he informed them of the babe's passing; Kagome had miscarried, probably due to stress, the doctor said.

 

They left the doctor's office in silence. Mrs. Higurashi sighed heavily as they both came in through the front door of their home; she remembered briefly that that was the very first place she'd ever met her son-in-law, Inuyasha.

 

As they had been leaving the doctor's office, Kagome had gone to use the restroom; her mother had seized that opportunity to speak with the doctor and tell him to inform the father, one Inuyasha Taisho, of the miscarriage.

 

Mrs. Higurashi knew that right then, as an emotionally exhausted Kagome trudged slowly up the stairs of their small home, somewhere in Tokyo, Inuyasha was receiving the worst phone call of his life.

 

On you and yours,

So come on and dance with me

`Cause you are so special.

 

Kagome slammed the front door shut in her husband's face instead of holding it open for him. A string of curses fluttered through the large foyer as Inuyasha opened the front door himself and practically chased after the Miko-turned-housewife. “Hey! Where are you going?” he demanded, following her into the master bedroom; she was busy throwing clothes into an overnight bag stretched out on the bed. Barely turning her head to throw him a vehement glare, she growled, “Back to my mother's. I need to deal with some of this.”

 

“Why can't you jus' deal with it here?”

 

“I don't wanna deal with it here, Inuyasha! You're here!”

 

“And what the fuck is that s'posed to mean?”

 

“What do you think it means? I don't wanna deal with you while I deal with this!”

 

“What the fuck are you dealing with?”

 

“This! You! Your whole story! While we were apart, you fell in love with someone else!”

 

“Well, doesn't it help me that she could've been your goddamned twin?”

 

She let out a strangled, enraged scream. “No, it does not! Where were you when I needed you, huh? Where were you when I realized that I couldn't get through the well? When I realized that I couldn't get back to you? Huh? Where the fuck were you when I lost our baby, huh? Were you moping around feeling sorry for yourself, or were you busy getting your rocks off to Keiko?!”

 

“Now, now, Kagome,” a new voice said from the doorway. Surprised, Inuyasha and Kagome whirled to face the newcomer. A tall, lean male with fiery, red hair pulled back into a fluffy ponytail stood in the bedroom doorway next to a curvy woman of average height. She had grey eyes and short, ebony hair cut in a mod-fashion bob, and she wore a pair of dark, skinny blue jeans, a pair of mid-calf, tan boots, and a light blue short-sleeve t-shirt. The male wore lighter, more worn blue jeans, a pair of white sneakers, and a loose black tee. He crossed his arms over his chest, smirking and looking over the startled pair of mates with bright green eyes.

 

Inuyasha sighed in relief, closing his eyes. “Boy, you nearly gave me a fuckin' heart attack! I hate when you use those damned, old school tricks to fuck with me!”

 

The red-haired male snickered; the woman seemed amused. “Well, chichi, I am a kitsune, after all; old school tricks are my specialty.”

 

Right then, they all heard a sharp, surprised gasp. It was the woman. “Oh my Kamis,” she murmured. “She looks exactly like Keiko!” She looked the male right in the eye. “You weren't kidding.”

 

Inuyasha groaned. “Ko, meet my mate, Kagome. Kagome, meet your beloved, little runt Shippo, all grown up, and his sometimes obnoxious mate Ko.” Glancing sideways at their guests, he went on, “Ko was better known in the Edo period as Tanaka Sakura.”

 

And my heart stops every time…

 

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A/N: Wow, this took me forever!!!! I am so glad that it's out now; I tried REALLY hard not to give anything away.

 

Stay tuned:

 

Chapter Seven: Family Secrets.