InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Possessed ❯ Epilogue

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

 

Epilogue

 

 

 

 

Life was kind to the hanyou and miko.

 

Sango and Miroku not only kept their secret as time went on, but they became very good friends for the unconventional couple. The taijiya even helped curb the spread of rumors. When somebody from their fighting group once asked her if she thought there was anything ‘inappropriate’ going on between the hanyou and miko, she’d answered with a disgusted, “What’s the matter with you?”

 

Let them take from that what they would; she’d known what it implied, but since it was technically a non-answer she hadn’t really been lying, and that person had never brought up the subject since.

 

Kagome’s family was unwaveringly supportive. Her grandfather clearly wasn’t thrilled, but he’d meant what he’d said and he wasn’t going to lose his granddaughter over it. Kagome’s mother accepted Inuyasha as her son-in-law, confirming for the hanyou what he’d felt about her early on; she really was as loving and understanding as his own mother had been. Souta also hadn’t been covering up any hidden feelings when he’d said he didn’t have a problem with it. He’d told his older sister the next time they spoke that so long as she was happy, he was happy for her, and he’d meant it. He reiterated his promise to take care of Inuyasha in the event of anything tragic befalling her, and he also swore to keep their secret because he understood the public scrutiny she’d face if it came out and he didn’t want that for her. Anyone who tried to badmouth his big sister would have him to deal with.

 

Daily life for our favorite couple fell into a pleasant routine. Inuyasha still helped Kagome with the morning housework most days, found the time to work on his woodcarving, shared in the cooking and went on the occasional run with Shiro in the forest. The hanyou and miko also went on the occasional run, together, and also still sometimes played their own version of archery tag, either with or without the paintballs. Their monthly field training also helped maintain their battle preparedness, although so far the only youkai issues to crop up had been the less urgent kind that the taijiya could easily handle on their own. There hadn’t been another incident yet like with the bear and badgers.

 

They still went out on new moon nights, although as agreed they now made the drive into the city instead of just eating at one of the local restaurants. If anyone at the little local ramen shop had put two and two together after Inuyasha’s debut on the six o’clock news nobody ever said anything to her about it when she popped in for their to-go orders, which she still brought home fairly often.

 

That wasn’t to say she didn’t get asked about Inuyasha, now, whenever she went out to run errands in their little town. After being interviewed on the news, probably nearly everyone in their little border town knew about him. Even those who’d missed the news had probably heard about it by now from someone they knew. At places like the grocery store or gas station she’d often get something like “Oh hey, you’re that new warrior miko with the hanyou!” and then she’d have to politely answer questions about what it was like to ‘own’ a hanyou while maintaining what she’d come to refer to as her alter ego.

 

At least nobody had been negative to her about it, yet. She had mentally prepared herself for backlash, maybe even protesters, but she was relieved that so far that hadn’t happened. What people might be saying about her, or them, on social media she was blessedly unaware, because she wasn’t a member of any of those sites and neither was he, and they planned on keeping it that way. All she cared about was how the local people around town, and especially their immediate neighbors, were going to react to her now. Granted, anyone who had a major problem with youkai, who either feared or hated them, should know better than to live on the very edge of a border town, right next to the forest, but that didn’t necessarily mean they’d be cool with an inu-hanyou living in their neighborhood, even though there was legally nothing anyone could do about it since he was her registered service youkai.

 

Thankfully, though, their neighbors in their little cul-de-sac had not only all been okay with Inuyasha’s presence after learning about him, some of them had even wanted to meet him. Their immediate next door neighbor on the left had even asked if he’d been the one behind the ‘hauntings’ and had thought it was noble of Kagome to keep the stray...not her words but clearly the way she’d viewed it, which was honestly fine with the hanyou and miko. So long as people looked at her deciding to ‘adopt the hanyou’ like he was a stray dog in a positive way, at the end of the day that was really all that mattered.

 

It definitely meant, though, that they could no longer take any chances eating somewhere local during his human nights. There were ramen shops in the city, after all. Places that saw so many faces coming and going in a single day that they’d probably never recognize her even if they had seen the thing on the news. And they didn’t always have to just go out to dinner, either. More than once, they went clubbing.

 

Inuyasha found that the loud club music was a lot easier to tolerate in human form, and the club they always went to didn’t start carding people until after ten, so getting in without any ID was never an issue. It was also less awkward, and torturous, to dance erotically with Kagome when they were, in fact, more than just friends.

 

A few times they even went out with Sango and Miroku, starting with going to the movies back in January, just like they’d planned. It felt weird to the hanyou, at first, to know he and Kagome had friends, and to even go and do things with those friends out in public, but it didn’t take long for Inuyasha to warm up to the taijiya and houshi when they were just so genuine, and so fun to be around. Like the time over the summer when they all went out to the county fair together, which was about an hour away in the next big city over. They’d actually headed out about an hour before sunset, so that they’d have as much time at the fair as possible. Inuyasha had worn a hoodie to hide his white hair and ears from fellow travelers on the road and had transformed in the car shortly before they’d arrived at the fairgrounds. Having watched a decent number of videos taken at fairs and carnivals online, he’d never thought it would be something he’d get to experience first hand. To say he’d had a really good time would be a huge understatement.

 

Months turned into another whole year gone by, and then before they knew it our favorite couple had another fun Halloween night out to celebrate, except this time, Inuyasha was actually in costume. The idea the year before had been for him to enjoy the one night a year that he could walk among humans as his hanyou self and no one would be the wiser, thinking that that was the costume, but after the local news had outed him he didn’t dare risk it, even in the city. His human nights were one thing, but surely he’d be recognized in all his hanyou glory, even if he didn’t wear his fire-rat.

 

Besides, dressing in costume was the best part of Halloween, and so this way, he got the complete experience. He admittedly enjoyed wearing the silly anime costume Kagome had put him in, with herself dressed up as another character from the same show. It was ridiculous to think of himself and Kagome as made up anime characters, but for her he’d dress up like a freakin’ pokémon if she wanted him to. Kagome had still brought his license with her, just in case, but she’d also made sure to park in a completely different area from the year before, and they successfully made it through the night and then back to the car without another ‘incident’ like what had happened last year, when they were confronted by that other miko.

 

It didn’t take long for the Christmas season to roll back around after that, and Christmas Eve dinner at the Higurashi Shrine was a lot less awkward than the year before. Everyone had had a full year to get used to the idea of he and Kagome being together, now, and even her grandfather greeted him no differently than had he been her human boyfriend.

 

Life continued to go by in a bit of a blur for the happy couple, and then there came the night when, while the houshi and his taijiya wife were over for dinner, Sango informed the miko and hanyou that she would be going on leave for a while soon...because she was pregnant.

 

Kagome squealed in delight and gave the equally excited female warrior a giant hug, in no way showing on the outside the twinge of...something...Inuyasha could detect in her scent. Not quite envy, not quite sadness. More like a longing, like how he himself had used to feel when he’d thought they would never be together.

 

He didn’t let his detection of this emotional scent ruin their evening together, of course, congratulating the human couple and laughing at Miroku’s jokes while the women talked about all things baby. Inuyasha waited until much later that night, after the slayer and monk had gone home, to breach the tender subject.

 

They discussed Kagome’s past and present desires for a family with raw honesty.

 

Yes, she had always wanted to be a mother. No, she did not for a second regret her life with him. Again she reiterated that she loved him and wanted to be with him, and had every intention of being with him for the rest of her life, provided he still felt the same way of course.

 

He took his turn, then, reassuring her that yes he still loved and wanted her, too, and that that would never change, but then he reminded her of what they’d discussed back when they’d first confessed their feelings to one another, and what she’d said again to her family that fateful Christmas Eve. A human husband was not required for raising a family. If she really wanted a child, he told her, she would have his complete support, and despite what society classified their relationship as, he would gladly take on the fatherly responsibilities in the privacy of their own home.

 

They weighed the pros and cons, then, discussing it openly and honestly. Adoption was always an option, assuming they would approve a ‘single’ woman who had a pet inu-hanyou. Not to mention her job as a reservist warrior miko put her life at risk, and if she would always have to drop whatever she was doing at a moment’s notice whenever a call came in then who would watch the baby?

 

Of course, in reality, Inuyasha could run the child to the shrine in under a minute, carrying Kagome who’d carry the child so that she could run through the barrier to deliver the babe safely into her mother or grandfather’s care. At least one of them were always home during the day because it was their duty to maintain and protect the shrine that was also always open to visitors every day. If a youkai attack happened at night then her entire family would obviously be home. They also wouldn’t be unaware of an attack that was happening, day or night, because they were always called as well whenever there was a ‘disturbance’ in order to be on alert, just in case a situation ever escalated. This meant that by the time Kagome and Inuyasha arrived with the child they’d have already been expecting them, because if she did decide to adopt, Kagome would definitely discuss this contingency plan with her family in advance.

 

As time went on and they looked more into it, though, it seemed like adoption might actually be more trouble than it was worth. Especially if the home inspector didn’t approve of the way Inuyasha had his own bedroom, as if he were, gasp, a person, and then there was the sharing of the one bathroom. Not an issue for a human family, but a small child using the same facilities as a hanyou? Not to mention a ‘youkai’ using the facilities in the first place, although maybe that wouldn’t be an issue, seeing as people just thought it was cute whenever a mortal cat or dog had been trained to do so.

 

Their biggest concern, though, was anyone from the agency figuring out or even just suspecting that they were together, and then branding Kagome a sexual deviant that shouldn’t be around children.

 

Besides all that, as the weeks went by and Kagome and Sango visited more often, and Kagome began asking the slayer all sorts of questions about her pregnancy and Googling things in order to better learn and ironically ‘mama bear’ over the older woman – Kagome had almost come to think of Sango as an older sister, and would be forever grateful for the taijiya’s suggestion that she register Inuyasha – the miko began longing not only for a baby, but for the entire experience. Maybe it was selfish, but she wanted to be pregnant and have her own baby.

 

She was afraid of telling Inuyasha, only because she wasn’t sure how his canine instincts would handle her carrying another man’s child, but she swallowed down her nervousness and told him anyway, because she’d promised to always be honest with him. It’d always kind of been up in the air as a possible option, of course, but whenever they’d discussed it in the past they’d usually focused on the ‘possibility’ of adopting, so the obvious alternative to that option was never really talked about. He both surprised and relieved her by saying he thought it was a fabulous idea, though. He didn’t freak out, jumping to the incorrect conclusion that she wanted permission to go get knocked up by a stranger.

 

He didn’t even have the chance, really, because the way she’d broached the subject was that she was thinking of doing artificial insemination, but he then immediately told her that it sounded like a great idea, revealing that he already understood what the procedure was. He also promised that he’d be just as much of a doting husband as Miroku was, tending to her every need throughout her pregnancy. At least as much as he was able. He couldn’t run to the store for ice cream at three in the morning, but he could definitely pamper her and do whatever she needed him to do for her at home. It would not bother him in the slightest to smell her carrying another man’s child because the logical human part of his brain would easily comprehend that it would be the result of a medical procedure and that for all intents and purposes he was the father.

 

Kagome also said, then, that she knew there were monks who ‘donated’, and that while the father’s identity would remain anonymous she could at least ensure he was a reiki user, which would pretty much guarantee her child would be, as well. Sango had even told her once, amused, that Miroku had done his part to ‘contribute to society’ back before they’d met, and that if he were not now a happily married man he would probably still be contributing, which had made Kagome laugh at the time. Of course, in reality they only allowed so many samples by the same man, and rotated distribution to ensure a diverse gene pool. The last thing anyone needed was a generation of reiki users all turning out to be half siblings when so many reiki users married one another.

 

Thinking of Miroku and the sperm bank had Kagome realizing she’d better find out from Miroku what his old donor number had been to make sure she did not get one of his samples, assuming there were still any available. It wasn’t that she didn’t want Miroku’s DNA, but she didn’t want to possibly in any way put a strain on their friendship. She’d also need to find a clinic willing to inseminate a ‘single’ woman, but that was a hell of a lot easier than finding an adoption agency that’d approve of her, since for one thing the clinic had no reason to ever find out about Inuyasha. They shouldn’t already know; it wasn’t like she was somebody famous and everybody knew her business. If she went to a busy clinic in the big city nobody would know who she was, and even if they did happen to recognize her from the news, because it’d stuck out in their mind because of Inuyasha, they couldn’t really deny her the procedure because of her service youkai, anyway. All that should matter to them was her own physical and mental health and whether she was a good candidate for it, medically speaking.

 

Agreeing wholeheartedly, Inuyasha said he’d be there for her every step of the way, except of course for the actual trips to the clinic, where it would unfortunately be in everyone’s best interests if he stayed home. Out of sight, out of mind. Unfortunately that would also be true when it came to future regularly scheduled doctor visits. Kagome would have to play off Inuyasha’s existence, for anyone who knew of him, as if he really were nothing more than a glorified service dog. Inuyasha even suggested, if it looked like somebody amongst the medical staff were growing suspicious of why she needed to resort to this instead of trying to find a nice husband, that she might ‘imply’ that men, in general, were not her thing. Kagome didn’t want to lie, but if somebody started prying who wouldn’t take ‘none of your business’ for an answer, it was a good fallback plan in that case. It would kill two birds with one stone, explaining away her lack of a husband while simultaneously erasing any growing suspicions regarding herself and Inuyasha.

 

Of course, right now it was all still just talk. Kagome wanted to be there for Sango throughout the rest of her pregnancy, first. but when she told the couple of her idea Sango and Miroku were also both supportive.

 

Sango ended up giving birth to twin girls, which the slayer teased was karma for Miroku having previously been quite the flirt prior to the two of them getting married. Now he would have to protect two daughters from boys like him once they were of dating age.

 

With Sango temporarily on maternity leave, Kagome volunteered to go on every call the local taijiya received. There was still nobody else who could handle that massive boomerang of hers – Inuyasha could lift it easily but he lacked the skill necessary to use it – but in the event of a youkai call turning out to require more aggressive weaponry Kagome’s arrows were more than a decent substitute, and so that way, the taijiya group weren’t down a fighter. They’d actually gained one since Inuyasha went with her.

 

They also weren’t down Kirara, who knew their entire town quite well and so all Sango had to do was tell the highly intelligent nekomata the location of wherever the troublesome youkai was and she flew there on her own to join up with the others. The feline wasn’t considered rogue because Sango’s father and brother were both legally authorized to function as Kirara’s handler in the event of Sango’s absence. It was all just a bunch of legal mumbo-jumbo to prevent liability because in reality, everyone knew Kirara was as intelligent as any human and was just helping out as a member of the team. Having found out earlier from Sango that it was possible to do that, to name a secondary temporary handler who’d have authorization in her absence, Kagome also had Sango on the books as being able to ‘handle’ Inuyasha in the event that she was temporarily down for the count. Not a tragedy that would have her brother Souta and the Higurashi shrine taking over Inuyasha’s registration, but just like if she’d twisted ankle or was sick, or anything that would force her to miss a specific call. Inuyasha could still go to help out if they needed him and legally be considered under Sango’s care during the fight.

 

While mother and daughters bonded, Kagome and Inuyasha also ‘unofficially’ volunteered to cover several of Miroku’s designated patrols in their forest, so that the monk could play hooky and remain home with his wife and newborn babies. They were going for runs in the forest anyway, so they just covered wider ground, was all, and ran more parallel to town rather than straight out into the thick of the wilds. After some time passed and the girls weren’t so new and fragile, when Sango and Miroku could really use some breaks, Kagome and Inuyasha also volunteered to babysit, hanging out at Sango and Miroku’s place so that the monk and slayer could go out to dinner or the movies, or even just sit in the park under a tree for some peace and quiet for a while. When the girls were older the miko and hanyou could watch them at their house, so Sango and Miroku could have a nice relaxing evening at home, but while they were still babies it was best to go to Sango and Miroku’s place.

 

Kagome also considered it good practice. She was eager for the experience, and to learn all there was about taking care of babies. Book smarts was one thing, but the best way to learn was by doing. Of course, Sango was just winging it, herself. Nobody was born knowing how to be a good parent, but her maternal instincts had kicked in something fierce, and holding one of Sango’s babies while giving the infant a bottle had Kagome’s biological clock’s alarm going off.

 

Still, she waited.

 

Watching and learning and observing for another year, it was just a little after the twins’ first birthday, Sango long since back at work with the slayer’s mother at the ready to step in as babysitter whenever needed, that Kagome found herself deciding that she didn’t want to wait anymore. She’d always wanted to be a mother and falling in love with Inuyasha hadn’t changed that. She’d have sacrificed that dream if it were necessary to do so. If she had to choose, she’d pick Inuyasha, hands down. But neither the hanyou nor anything else in her life was going to force such a decision from her. When she told Inuyasha one night that she was ready, that she wanted to move forward with doing the procedure, his response had been to pull her into a tender kiss and tell her she was going to make a wonderful mother.

 

It was a future they were both looking forward to.

 

 

Fin

 

For now