InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Purity 5: Phantasm ❯ Family ( Chapter 49 )

~~Chapter 49~~

~Family~

 

It seemed to Sydnie that the first couple of weeks following their arrival in Maine flew by. Spending most of her time with Gin and Jillian, she hadn't gotten much time alone with Bas though he tended to show up at odd times during the day just to smile at her or to hug her, to make sure that she was all right.

 

She had to admit that she rather enjoyed spending time with both Gin and Jillian. Bas had been right: it was impossible not to like Gin Zelig. So bright and bubbly, there was a certain air of naiveté surrounding the woman, too. Always ready with a warm smile or an encouraging word, it was easy for Sydnie to see why everyone adored Gin, and Jillian . . . Well, with her effervescent personality, Jillian had managed to ferret her way past Sydnie's defenses, too. She even liked Madison Cartham despite her initial resolve that she would do better not to meet that particular person.

 

As it was, Bas had managed to coax her downstairs two days after their arrival only to come face to face with the girl. Sitting on the sofa in the living room, she hopped up and ran over to hug Bas. Sydnie stepped into her path, glowering at the overzealous girl before she got a chance to latch onto her puppy. Blinking in surprise as Sydnie erupted in a menacing growl, Madison offered her a hesitant smile and stepped back. After a rather stilted introduction, the girl reached over, grabbing a fistful of Sydnie's hair just before launching into an animated description of hair styles that would look good on Sydnie. Apparently Madison wanted to be a beautician, and she was `dying' to get her `hands on' hair as pretty as Sydnie's.

 

In fact, the only real argument that she and Bas had was the morning after their arrival. Waking up to a certain man's roaming hands, she was more than happy to oblige him. She'd been so engrossed in what they were doing, however, that she hadn't realized that someone had intruded until Evan's voice had cut through the lust-induced haze enveloping her mind. With a savage growl, Bas pushed Sydnie off of him, tossing a blanket over her as he shot to his feet and jerked on a pair of jeans before taking off at break-neck speed with every intention of maiming his brother. Sydnie dressed quickly and had given chase. It was her considered opinion that Evan was harmless enough, and worse, Bas was so much bigger than the teenager that she really was worried that he'd cause permanent damage if he wasn't stopped.

 

As it was, she'd skidded to a halt just inside Cain Zelig's study—enemy territory, as far as she was concerned—in time to see Gin, who was almost in tears, tugging at Bas' arm as the elder brother pinned Evan against the wall with a hand to his neck. Evan must have been suffering oxygen depravation because he was laughing rather insanely. The tai-youkai was resting his elbows on the desk with his face buried in his hands.

 

She could understand Bas' upset, sure, but the absolute rage in his expression was a lot more foreboding. She'd never seen him so close to losing his temper, even during the altercations with the Onyx, and to be honest, it frightened her.

 

She'd railed at him for an hour or more over that incident. “You could have hurt him!” she'd yelled.

 

“Yeah? Good, because I meant to!”

 

“That's not even slightly amusing,” she bit out, narrowing her eyes on him.

 

“He saw you naked!” Bas snarled back.

 

“That doesn't matter! Do you honestly think that I want anyone but you, you territorially-challenged dog?”

 

He snapped his mouth closed on his retort, cheeks pinking as he snorted. “No,” he admitted.

 

“Good, because I don't,” she grumbled. “Anyway, you should be glad that you have a brother; not fight with him.”

 

“Damn it, you don't get it! Evan doesn't do anything but push me! He's always done it, and he's doing it now! That's all he's ever wanted to do!”

 

“And at least he's here to do that!” Smashing her hand against her lips, Sydnie turned away and shook her head. Her anger seemed to drain away from her, expelled with the words that had spilled over. “Never mind, puppy,” she murmured. “It isn't my place to interfere, is it?”

 

“Sydnie . . .”

 

Gunnar had interrupted then, dragging Bas off to talk to his father. By the time he came up to the studio later, they'd both calmed down. Bas had offered her a tentative smile and assured her that he was sorry for upsetting her. Sydnie had cuddled on his lap, telling him that she was sorry for butting in.

 

Sydnie shook off the memories and crossed her arms over her stomach, pacing the length of the floor that spanned the wall of windows. Nearly seven . . . where was Bas?

 

The wedding was planned out, for the most part. Gin said she would take care of sending out the invitations as soon as the final guest list was approved. Sydnie had a final fitting for her dress early next week. The trouble was that she still hadn't asked anyone to stand up with her, and she didn't have anyone to give her away, either. Gin, however, seemed to be in a hurry to see them married, and to that end, Sydnie hadn't complained since she viewed it more as something they were doing to please Bas' mother than anything else. She'd been meaning to ask Bas for his advice on those things, but it always seemed that talking was the last thing on either of their minds when they were finally left alone for the night . . .

 

Shooting a quick glance at the table, Sydnie cringed. Gin had left a copy of the guest list for Sydnie to look over with Bas. Either he hadn't told his mother that she wanted a small wedding, or Bas' idea of `small' was light years away from hers . . .

 

Worse, the guest list had brought home another painfully obvious thing in her mind; something that she'd forgotten until earlier today.

 

With a sigh, she rubbed her face but whipped around in time to see Bas closing the door behind himself. “You're a sight worth seeing,” he murmured, leaning back against the door and casting her a lopsided little grin. “Mom said dinner's about ready. You want to go downstairs for it?”

 

Shaking her head, she didn't even try to smile since he asked her the same question every night, and every night her answer was invariably the same: no.

 

Pushing himself away from the door, Bas wandered over to wrap his arms around her, drawing her back against his chest. “Okay,” he agreed, “but you know you'll have to meet Dad sometime.”

 

She shook her head again. “Not now, puppy,” she whispered. “I just . . . I can't . . .”

 

He nodded slowly. “All right . . . suppose you tell me what's really bothering you?”

 

She shrugged and tried to hide her upset. Bas' frown deepened, and she knew the feeble attempt didn't work. “Sebastian, you said that it'd be a small wedding. You promised . . .”

 

“Well, yeah,” he remarked with a confused frown. “I told Mom that . . . she said it was fine.”

 

Breaking away from his hold, Sydnie stomped over to the table and snatched up the guest list before stomping back over and jamming the list under his nose. “A hundred people is hardly `small', puppy!”

 

Bas winced and hesitantly took the paper, giving it the once-over before heaving a sigh and grimacing. “This is small,” he maintained. “Baby, I'm the next tai-youkai . . . There are certain people I'm expected to invite . . .”

 

“You really don't have to remind me of that,” she bit out. “Forget it. Forget I said anything.”

 

“Kitty . . .”

 

“No . . . you're right. Expectations . . . you're right.”

 

“I can ask her to cut some people,” he offered. Sydnie could sense his discomfort at the idea of asking any such thing.

 

“Don't you see anything wrong with that list other than the number of guests?”

 

Bas read the list again. “Uh . . . well . . . we don't have to ask the generals . . . Ben, probably. He's an old family friend, but the rest of these people—most of them—are family, and—”

 

“You don't get it, do you?”

 

“I guess I don't.”

 

She sighed, gripping her temples and rubbing furiously to dispel the pounding in her skull that was growing steadily harder to ignore. “Like I said: just forget it.”

 

“Baby, I can't read your mind.”

 

She shot him a consternated glance before heading for the staircase that led to the loft. “Can't we just . . . we could go to Vegas. They do quickie-weddings all the time, right?”

 

Bas caught her shoulder and forced her to look at him. “Sydnie . . . my mom and dad . . . they've been looking forward to this, you know?”

 

“Your dad,” she mumbled, eyes narrowing dangerously. “Your dad? That's it, isn't it? It's all because of your father expects this, right? That's the real reason you want this stupid wedding!”

 

“No, I—”

 

“I don't want it!” she yelled, grasping her temples and doubling over in a purely protective manner. “I don't want this wedding! I don't want to meet the rest of your family! I don't want any of this! All I ever wanted was just to be with you!”

 

He drew back. She heard him gasp. Steeling herself against the surge of regret for the callousness of her words, Sydnie didn't back down. It seemed like forever before he spoke, and when he did, his voice was soft; sad. “It's just one day, Sydnie. Just one day, and that'll be it; I swear.”

 

“Just one day,” she repeated incredulously, her voice a ragged whisper. “This time, maybe. I've done nothing but change things about me for you since the moment I met you, Bas the Hunter. How many more times do I have to give in?”

 

Bas winced at that, the truth in her words striking him deep. He stood there for a moment, hands clenched tightly at his sides. With a curt nod, he finally turned to go. “I'll be back,” he mumbled, taking the stairs two at a time.

 

`Don't be stubborn, Sydnie! Call him back! You're just upset; that's all, and you're taking it out on him—again.'

 

Sydnie flinched but remained silent, unable to do more than watch as Bas stomped out of the studio again.

 

`How could you do that to him? You ought to be grateful that someone like him wants to be with you; not doing your damndest to chase him away.'

 

Sinking down on the bed and drawing her legs up to her chest, she buried her face against her knees and sighed. Wasn't that why she'd kept quiet for this long? Because somewhere deep down she new she ought to be ecstatic that a man like Sebastian Zelig really did want her as his wife and mate. Still the truth of the matter was much more difficult to admit, even to herself.

 

`You might as well come clean, Sydnie. The size of the guest list didn't really bother you, especially after Gin explained that most of the guests were family. What really bothered you was that there wasn't a single person on that list just for you.'

 

She winced, tightening her arms around her legs as she scrunched up her shoulders. `If you try to tell me that I don't have a right to be upset about this, I swear I'll—'

 

`No, no . . . I wasn't going to say any such thing, but you really shouldn't let yourself think that it means there's something wrong with you or that it's your fault because it isn't.'

 

That might be true. It didn't really make her feel any better, though, and that was the real reason she hated to say anything to Bas about it. It sounded so . . . pathetic, didn't it? She had chosen to be alone, she supposed. Deluded for so long into thinking that it was what she wanted; knowing that in the end, it would be better that way . . . She'd understood that the price of her actions was death; that in order to avenge her sister, she'd be forfeiting her own life. It hadn't seemed like a high price back then. She hadn't thought that she'd meet someone like Bas, had she?

 

And the concessions she'd allotted him weren't really so bad. His family—at least, most of them—were good folks. They really had opened their home to her without question and without reservations, and while Sydnie wasn't overjoyed with the idea of the big wedding, she had known all along that Gin was.

 

So lost in her bleak thoughts that Sydnie didn't hear the door open below, and she didn't notice the intruder until she cleared her throat to draw Sydnie's attention.

 

“I knocked,” Jillian explained quietly, biting her lip and sitting gingerly on the edge of the bed. Her pale blue eyes were tinged with concern as she gazed at her would-be sister-in-law. “Is everything okay with you and Bassie? I saw him in the hallway . . .”

 

“It's fine,” she lied, forcing a smile for the girl's benefit. “It's nothing.”

 

Jillian didn't look like she believed Sydnie, but she nodded. “I've never seen him as happy as he has been since he brought you home,” she said quietly. “It's like he's a completely different person now.”

 

“Really?”

 

Jillian nodded. “Yes . . . he smiles more, and he laughs more . . . It's nice to see him being less serious all of the time.”

 

Sydnie tried to smile. To her absolute horror, she couldn't help the tears that sprang to her eyes. “You think so?”

 

“Of course I do!” Jillian scooted closer and gave Sydnie's shoulders a quick squeeze. “I just wanted to tell you that I'm glad you came home with him, too. I mean . . . my older sister and I aren't really that close.” She wrinkled her nose and shook her head. “That's not exactly what I was trying to say . . . I'm not so good with words, you know? Belle and I are close, I guess, but she's always lived in Japan. She comes here to visit and stuff, but . . . two of her daughters are older than me, and she treats me like I'm still a little girl. That's not a bad thing, really. I suppose it's natural, right?”

 

Sydnie nodded though she didn't entirely understand what Jillian was trying to say. “I guess so.”

 

Jillian picked at a loose string on the coverlet, pulling it up and using her claw to cut it as close to the fabric as possible. “I was adopted, you know? Daddy found me in the forest near here. He says that my mother asked him to take care of me. Don't get me wrong, because I love Mama and Daddy . . . I just wonder sometimes . . . and I thought that maybe you did, too.”

 

Sydnie didn't respond right away. She hadn't realized that Jillian, with her happy smile and her youthful optimism, could really understand how Sydnie often felt. How often had Sydnie laid awake at night, wondering what her family had been like; wondering why they hadn't wanted Kit or her? It might not have been the same. Jillian knew that her birth parents were both dead. Still . . .

 

“I do,” she replied softly.

 

Jillian drew a deep breath and smiled before ducking her head and shrugging self-consciously. “Um . . . I feel kind of silly, saying this, and if you don't want to, I understand, but . . . if you don't have anyone else in mind, I'd love to be your maid of honor,” she blurted, cheeks pinking as she studiously avoided Sydnie's gaze.

 

Sydnie blinked in surprise and slowly shook her head. “You . . . would?” she asked.

 

Jillian jerked her head once in agreement. “I mean, I just thought . . .”

 

“I'd like that,” Sydnie said when Jillian faltered. “I'd like that a lot.”

 

Jillian's smile was instant and radiant. With a happy little squeak, she threw her arms around Sydnie and hugged her. “Really?'

 

Sydnie laughed. “Yes, I would.”

 

“I wasn't sure if I should offer,” Jillian admitted. “I was afraid you'd think I was being pushy or something.”

 

“I'm glad you did,” Sydnie assured her.

 

Jillian giggled and clapped her hands together. “That means I get to plan your bachelorette party! I wonder if I can convince Gavvie to jump out of a cake . . .”

 

Sydnie couldn't help the swell of laughter that spilled over at that. She'd spoken to this `Gavvie' just once thus far. The poor puppy seemed to get rather flustered when faced with other women aside from Jillian. Even blushing profusely any time Gin spoke to him, the idea of Gavin Jamison jumping out of a cake at a bachelorette party was just something that Sydnie couldn't see happening. It had been explained to her that Gavin and Jillian had been the best of friends for years, and in the course of those years, Jillian had always stubbornly maintained that Gavin was her mate despite Gavin's staunch insistence that he wasn't. He was staying at the Zelig estate because he'd opted to transfer to the University of Maine at the semester break and hadn't been able to find any housing on campus.

 

“Poor puppy . . . I don't think he's over the shock of Sebastian's threats,” Sydnie mused.

 

Jillian made a face. “Bassie always threatens Gavvie,” she said with a shake of her head. “Even before, when Gavvie was so small . . .”

 

Which was another thing that Sydnie had heard, too, and accounted for why Bas was so stunned when he'd finally come face-to-face with the young man. After he'd managed to calm Sydnie down enough that he wasn't worried that she was really going to cause bodily harm to Madison, he'd noticed the very large dog-youkai who was sitting in a chair with his baby sister. With a low growl, Bas strode over to the couple, tugging Jillian to her feet before leaning over and bearing his fangs at the younger youkai. After making no bones about what, exactly, Bas would do with crucial parts of Gavin's anatomy should the young man try anything untoward with his sister; he'd glowered at Jillian before grabbing Sydnie's hand and dragging her through the living room into the kitchen.

 

It had amused her, seeing Bas behaving in such a protective manner toward his sister, even though she had a feeling that Jillian didn't feel quite as benevolent toward her brother.

 

“Is he really your mate?” Sydnie asked, voicing the thoughts that Bas had mentioned shortly after ensuring that Gavin had a healthy respect for the next tai-youkai. “I mean, are you certain that he really is your mate? Sebastian said you were four the first time you said it.”

 

Jillian giggled and shrugged. “He is; I know it. I've always known it.” Her smile faltered but didn't disappear, and she sighed. “If I could just convince him, I'd be one step ahead of the game.”

 

Sydnie nodded slowly, wishing she could offer the girl a modicum of reassurance. As it was, she didn't know the situation well enough to do that, so she settled for the next best thing: smoothing Jillian's hair back from her face and pasting on an encouraging smile—the same sort of smile that Kit used to give her whenever Sydnie asked about their parents.

 

“Mama says that if it's meant to be, it will be,” Jillian went on, her voice steady despite the hint of sadness lingering in her gaze. “What's that old song say? `You can't hurry love', right?” She smiled wanly. “I wish I could.”

 

Sydnie smiled and nodded, unsure what else she could possibly say.

 

Jillian laughed softly, brushing the melancholy thoughts aside. “Gosh, there's still so much to do, you know? Have you two decided where you're going for your honeymoon? I think you should insist he take you someplace warm . . .”

 

“Jilli, could you leave us alone?”

 

Sydnie glanced over Jillian's head in time to see Bas trudge up the stairs. His eyes were bright though his expression seemed stony, and Sydnie couldn't help but wonder just what he had told his parents.

 

“Okay,” Jillian agreed, quickly hugging Sydnie once more. “I can't wait to tell Mama! She'll be so excited! Good night!”

 

Sydnie couldn't help but smile as Jillian stopped long enough to kiss Bas' cheek before flitting down the stairs and out the door, pausing only long enough to wiggle her fingers in farewell. Stealing another glance at Bas, Sydnie stifled a sigh. “She offered to be my maid of honor,” she explained, breaking the tense silence that had fallen.

 

“Did she?”

 

She nodded, shifting her legs to the side and shrugging. “I'm sorry,” she whispered, scowling at the coverlet, unable to meet his gaze. “I . . . I shouldn't have—”

 

“No, it's okay. You were right. I knew you didn't want to come here, and I haven't spent much time with you—at least, not as much as I did before . . . I just thought—” Cutting himself off abruptly, he sank down on the edge of the bed with a sad little smile. “It doesn't matter what I thought. You said you didn't want a large wedding, and I should have explained that to Mom better than I did . . . I'm sorry, kitty. Mom said she'd cut down the guest list to just family and Ben . . . Is that better?”

 

Shaking her head, she held out her hand in a confused sort of gesture. “It's not that, puppy; not really . . . The guest list—”

 

“Dad said that if it would make you feel more comfortable . . . he said he'd stay home.”

 

Sydnie blinked and smothered a shocked little gasp. She hadn't really thought that Bas' father would offer any such thing, and while she understood why he'd think that maybe her reluctance was because of him, she couldn't help but be appalled at the idea that Bas' father would miss his son's wedding . . . “That's not . . . it isn't . . . You don't understand, Sebastian . . . it isn't about him, and—”

 

Bas shook his head, stripping off his shirt and unbuttoning his jeans before shuffling over to his side of the huge bed. “Maybe not, but he thinks that maybe you'll change your mind about marrying me if he doesn't go.”

 

“Did you look at the list, Sebastian?” she asked gently, hating the upset on Bas' face that he desperately tried to hide from her. The idea that his father wasn't going to attend his wedding really hurt him a lot more than he was willing to let on. “I mean, really look at it?”

 

“Of course I did,” he grumbled. “That's why I talked to my parent, wasn't it?”

 

“Were there any names that you didn't recognize on that list?”

 

Bas shook his head, his frown shifting into a darker scowl as he struggled to comprehend what Sydnie was trying to say. “No . . . should there have been?”

 

“Shouldn't there have been?” she countered.

 

Bas stopped abruptly and grimaced as comprehension finally struck. “Fuck . . . I'm stupid—really stupid . . . and really thoughtless, too . . . I'm sorry, baby. I didn't realize . . .”

 

“It's okay,” she forced herself to say. “It's not your fault, is it?”

 

He slipped into the bed and pulled Sydnie in close, kissing her forehead and sighing softly as he stared into her eyes. “I'll be there for you,” he ventured, giving her a little squeeze. “Does that count?”

 

“It counts,” she assured him.

 

“I just want to marry you,” he said with a bashful grin. “I don't care if we have a big wedding or a small one . . . whatever you want, Sydnie. Oh!”

 

She sat up as he leaned over the side of the bed to retrieve something off the nightstand. He shot her an inscrutable glance then turned to face her once more, holding out a small black velvet box for her inspection. “What's that?”

 

“Open it,” he told her, setting the box on the bed beside her.

 

Sydnie hesitantly reached for it, casting Bas a sidelong glance before lifting the lid. The polished diamond glittered in the ambient lighting, and she couldn't help the smile that tugged on her lips. “For me?”

 

Bas smiled. “Well, sure . . . who else would it be for?”

 

“It's so useless! I love it!” she assured him.

 

He chuckled as he pulled the ring from the foam that held it securely in place, pausing a moment to kiss the diamond before gently slipping the band over her finger. “It looks good on you,” he murmured.

 

Sydnie hugged him, knocking him back against the mattress in her exuberance. “Thank you, puppy.”

 

“I'm glad you like it.”

 

She sighed and let him cuddle her close. Her happiness was tempered, though, as the memory of Bas' sad expression filtered through her mind. “Sebastian?”

 

“Hmm?”

 

“About your father . . .”

 

He sighed. “Forget it, Sydnie. Maybe it's better this way.”

 

“But—”

 

“Listen, he won't come. Even if I told him that you'd changed your mind, I know my father. If he thinks that it's better this way, then it won't matter what I say.”

 

“And you think I'm stubborn?”

 

Bas didn't even try to smile. Reaching over to push the button on the console built into the nightstand, he shut off the lights in the studio, leaving only the lamp beside him burning. “Don't worry. It's your wedding. It should be the way you want it to be.”

 

Sydnie sighed and bit her lip.

 

`You should feel bad, Ms. Bitch. You saw how upset Bas was with the idea that his father wouldn't be at his own wedding.'

 

She didn't even try to argue with her youkai. `Maybe if I talked to him; maybe—'

 

`And you'd do that? You'd talk to Cain Zelig? I think Bas is right. Just leave it alone. You've done enough, haven't you?'

 

Sydnie grimaced as Bas' arms tightened around her. `I should try, shouldn't I? For Sebastian?'

 

`Just be careful not to make it worse.'

 

`Understood.' Brushing aside the twinges of guilt, she promised herself that she'd find a way to convince Bas' father that he should be at the wedding.

 

“It's been a long day, hasn't it?” he said with a sigh.

 

Sydnie forced a smile and leaned up to kiss him. “I missed you.”

 

Bas rolled over, pinning her against the mattress as the kiss deepened. “How much did you miss me?”

 

She giggled. “Come here, puppy, and I'll show you.”

 

“Oh?”

 

She nodded, letting her hands trail slowly down the center of his chest.

 

And she did.

 

 

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A/N:

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InUyAsHaRlZ ------ FireDemon86 ------ kamackie21 ------ Usagiseren05 ------ smallflower ------ OROsan0677 ------ RisikaFox

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Final Thought fromSydnie:

Now if I can just find someone to give me away …

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Blanket disclaimer for this fanfic (will apply to this and all other chapters in Phantasm): I do not claim any rights to InuYasha or the characters associated with the anime/manga. Those rights belong to Rumiko Takahashi, et al. I do offer my thanks to her for creating such vivid characters for me to terrorize.

 

~Sue~