InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Purity ❯ Promises of Forever ( Chapter 49 )

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

Closing the door with a soft sigh, InuYasha leaned back against it as Kagome dropped her purse on the hall table. She let her head fall back, her hand on her neck, and she rolled her head slowly from side to side. From the birthday party, InuYasha had dragged her to the shrine to tell her family the good news. Mrs. Higurashi had been thrilled and had insisted upon cooking a traditional celebratory meal for the couple.

Kagome smiled wanly, remembering her mother's reaction as she'd had showed her the ring.

Mrs. Higurashi's eyes had grown huge as she stared at her daughter's hand. "This must have cost you a fortune, InuYasha!" she gasped, looking a little appalled at the absolute size of the stones in the ring.

InuYasha shrugged conspicuously and stared at the floor, pink cheeked, and obviously embarrassed. "It really didn't cost that much." Then he glanced at Kagome, as though he expected her to be upset by his confession.

"He made the diamonds."

Mrs. Higurashi's eyebrows rose in surprise. "He . . . But how?"

InuYasha ended up having to explain to her whole family how the Kongousouha worked.

Through the entire meal, all Mrs. Higurashi talked about was the wedding. Kagome, at first, had been uncomfortable. She hadn't actually discussed any of it with InuYasha, and he, for the most part, was talking to Souta about different sword tactics. After a few of Kagome's vague answers, Mrs. Higurashi had turned to InuYasha and asked him if there was anything in particular he wanted for the wedding. InuYasha had shook his head and assured Mrs. Higurashi that whatever she and Kagome came up with would be fine so long as it wasn't a huge affair, and so long as he didn't have to shoes that pinched his feet.

"Yes, have you two discussed when you want to get married? Or where?"

Kagome glanced over at InuYasha. He was staring at her in that way again, the way that made her want to dissolve into a puddle of raw nerves. "Goshinboku," they both replied quietly.

"But when?" Mrs. Higurashi persisted.

InuYasha shrugged. "How soon can we do it?"

Kagome had been surprised by his answer. "Well, I'm still underage," she said slowly.

Mrs. Higurashi waved her hand dismissively. "You're underage without parental consent, and you have a mother who would be more than happy to give her consent."

Kagome stared at Mrs. Higurashi in surprise. She hadn't expected that. "Really?"

Mrs. Higurashi smiled. "Kagome, if there were ever two people who were meant to be together, it's you two."

InuYasha's soft voice cut through Kagome's reverie. She blinked to clear her mind and smiled at the hanyou. "I think if it was up to your mother we'd be married tomorrow."

Kagome grimaced and shuffled off toward the bedroom. "I'm going to bathe. Can I borrow one of your shirts?"

"Keh! Like I care. You look better in them than I do, anyway."

She flushed as she pulled one out of his closet then headed off to take a shower.

It did wonders for her, actually. Gone was the stiffness in her shoulders and neck. The hot water soothed away the fatigue of the day and served to invigorate her. By the time she was done toweling off, Kagome was smiling and wide awake.

InuYasha was propped up on the bed, leaning back against the headboard with a frown of concentration as he stared down at the papers spilling off his lap. Obviously grading some tests, Kagome had been pleasantly surprised when he'd mentioned to her before that he enjoyed teaching the younger kids and was thinking about trying to earn his elementary education permit. He could do it, she was sure. He certainly was a quick study on things. It amazed her, how quickly he had adapted to her time.

The puppies frolicked on the bed, skittering on the slick papers in their play. InuYasha didn't seem to notice them at all. Then one of the boys-the black one that Kagome had already known was destined to be the orneriest out of the group---tugged InuYasha's hair. InuYasha reached over and thumped the puppy on the head with his index finger without looking up from his task. The puppy backed away and plopped down before whining sadly. InuYasha reached over and scratched the pup's ears gently. Satisfied, the animal hopped up and lunged after the others.

She sank down on the edge of the bed. The puppies descended on her. Kagome giggled as the wiggling warm bodies scampered around her. InuYasha finally looked up from the paperwork with a smile. He scooped the papers together and slid them into the black leather binder. "I'm going to go brush my teeth. That `whatever-it-was' your mother made was spicy." He made a face. Kagome grinned. She'd actually been surprised that he'd eaten any of it. Poor hanyou. "You want anything while I'm up?"

Kagome shook her head and made a face as one of the puppies latched onto her hair and tugged. InuYasha growled a warning at the errant pup, who immediately let go and scampered to the edge of the bed. She leaned down with her front legs splayed, rear end sticking up while her tail wiggled furiously. She barked at InuYasha. He chuckled and put the puppies on the floor. "Go on," he remarked, herding the pups toward the doorway. "Get out of here."

Dammit got up and paused long enough to let Kagome scratch her head before she followed InuYasha and the puppies out of the room.

Kagome crawled over onto the bed and flopped down with a smile. She sat up and tugged the shirt down over her legs before hooking her arms around her raised knees with a contented sigh.

The sound of claws grazing over wood drew her attention. She turned her face toward the doorway. InuYasha stood there, hands gripping the frame above his head, elbows bent. He leaned forward slightly, lazily. He'd removed his shirt in the bathroom, and Kagome couldn't help but appreciate the way his skin glowed golden in the dim lamplight. But it was the look in his half-closed eyes that brought a flush to her cheeks, a rapid hammering of her heart. Her breath caught before it reached her lungs, and she stared, transfixed, caught in his gaze.

"I want you."

His words shot through her, tightened around her soul. A hundred thoughts, a thousand emotions, a million unspoken words drifted in the air to him. Her entire being felt like glass blown too thin, ready to either be let go or she would shatter. Unable to speak, she nodded once. Still he remained where he stood.

Slowly, deliberately, he let go of the doorframe and stepped forward. His gaze never faltered. His words, spoken so long ago, came back to her, echoed through her mind with the subtlety of a summer breeze. `For me it's got to be forever with you.' She wanted to smile but she didn't dare. Too serious a vow was made, too stark a thing—living, breathing, pulsing between them. She could feel it. He promised her forever, and she promised him that, too.

And he came to her, leaned over her, forced her back against the pillows, kissed her gently, softly, a kiss to soothe her, a kiss meant to remove the unsettling feeling that she was coming entirely undone. Her hands lifted to cup his face, to stroke his cheeks. Her mind registered the moisture under her fingertips. "Why are you crying?" she asked, her voice tender, soft, a whisper in the silence.

He shook his head, nuzzling his cheek against hers. His tone was as incredulous, as though he was amazed at his own sentiments. "I don't know."

She turned his face toward hers. The molten gold of his eyes was bright, shining. She leaned up, kissing away his tears, as he had done for her before. Words fell away, leaving only emotion behind. His lips sought out hers again. Her hands fell to his chest. She learned his body by touch, reveled in the spirit of him. Vibrant, powerful, alive, his muscles rippled under his skin as he stroked her cheek, caressed her throat, lowered his lips to the pulse that fluttered, surged, called to him.

Fire burned in her veins, leaving her weak yet with an odd strength as she heard a vague popping, one by one, as if something was deliberately being stretched to the breaking point, and it had to give. Cool air hit her overheated flesh, and Kagome understood. Unwilling to take his attention off of what he was doing, InuYasha had cut away the buttons that held the shirt closed. She arched against him, needing to feel his flesh against hers. He growled in her ear.

"Forever, Kagome."

"Forever," she agreed, her tone strangled, breathless. She gasped as his palm brushed over her then came back to settle over her heart. "Don't stop," she pleaded, her breathing stuttered, halting. Her mind was dissolving. She needed to say it before she couldn't.

His chuckle was uneven in response to her demand. "You think I can?"

Her giggle was cut short when his mouth delved lower. Her fingers dug into his shoulders as his mouth closed over her breast, drawing her off the bed with a harsh cry ripped from her soul. The torrent of tactile emotion surged around her, cradling her and yet unsettling her. A wanton desire, a blatant need, the will to dominate or be dominated, it didn't matter which . . . Kagome didn't fight the rush of heat that coursed through her. As if her entire life had led to this one moment, she realized with remarkable clarity that this was where she belonged.

He strained against her, shuddered under her hands. His entire body quivered. Trying to soothe him with her touch, Kagome wrapped her arms around him, bringing him tightly against her. But the feel of his flesh against hers was like a scalding brand. She whimpered, and he kissed her.

Dragging his body off of hers, Kagome opened her eyes as she struggled to sit up and stared as InuYasha discarded his pants. Her gaze skittered away. He chuckled. When he didn't move, though, she dared a glance at his face. He stood, staring at her as though he was trying to memorize everything about her. Instinctively, she started to draw the shirt closed. His hands shot out to stop her, pushing the shirt from her shoulders. It pooled around her on the coverlet. She shivered but couldn't tell if it was the air in the room or the way he stared at her. Wrapping his hands around her arms, he dragged her to him, mouth dropping onto hers with a barely-contained ferocity. She gasped. He growled. A part of her felt as though it was melting, and the increasing need, the physical desire became an ache deep within her. He completed her yet left her feeling as though there was something missing. If she could think, if she could piece together any semblance of coherency, she might be able to figure out what it was that she needed, she thought wildly.

And suddenly she was lying on her back again, and InuYasha was staring down at her, a fierce smile on his face, the look of a man who was about to have everything he'd ever dreamed of. "Please . . ." she whispered. She felt him, silently asking her, waiting for her permission?

She lifted her hips against his, opening herself to him, offering him what he wanted and what she needed.

The shocking feel of being completely whole, carried forward on a surge of heat. Visceral instinct combined with the need to cherish, and he held her, kissed her, comforted her as she felt as though she was coming undone. She whimpered his name against his lips. His low rumble sounded in her ear even as he growled. Reacting to the unadulterated emotion, reaching for the elusive heights of the stars, he led her gently. The tremors in his body were magnified, and Kagome understood how much it cost him to let her have this. Controlling his baser instincts, he gave her what she needed.

A nearly painful ache built inside her, she tried to tell him, tried to show him. She dug her fingernails into his back in her frustration, balancing on the cusp of something both terrifying and insistent. The only thing she knew was the fear that if she didn't hold onto InuYasha that he would somehow slip away from her, into the darkness just beyond the veil.

His body reacted to hers, and suddenly she was too close to the edge, and she couldn't turn back. One more shove, and she fell as blinding light the color of her spiritual energy engulfed her, soothed her, even as she could feel her body shatter into the shards that flew out to cover the earth. She cried out. She vaguely heard InuYasha answer with his own rasping entreaty.

InuYasha collapsed in her arms, pinning her down as her body drew itself back together. It was a slow process. Her heart raced in her chest, his thumping in an erratic pattern that somehow matched hers. Suddenly, she understood and smiled. The marking had only been a part of the ritual. This had been the other part. Existing as two wholly separate individuals, they shared the same heart. It was a beautiful thing.

With a soft moan, InuYasha rolled, dragging her with him. She was content to be held. He stroked her shoulder gently, idly. She pushed his hair out of his eyes and leaned up to kiss him.

"I never realized how tiny your hands really are," InuYasha said, breaking the comfortable silence as he twined his fingers together with hers. "Are you sure this ring is all right?"

She stretched and sighed, happy, content. "It's perfect, InuYasha, and it's only a ring, anyway. It could have been plastic, and I wouldn't have cared."

"Keh!" He leaned across her to drag the coverlet over them both.

"I'm so happy you came after me," she admitted. "I hoped I was doing the right thing . . . I only wanted . . ." she sighed, unable to finish her thought out loud.

He let go of her hand and lifted her chin to make her look at him. "Why did you think I would want Kikyou to come back?"

She sighed. "You called after her. You didn't want her to go . . . You sounded so sad, and I just wanted you to be happy."

Hugging her tight, holding her close, Kagome could feel the beat of his heart, so strong, so vital. She leaned in closer, and for a moment, time froze, suspended over them, a bittersweet second that would last them a lifetime. "When I thought that I couldn't get to you—when I saw the well filled with water—I thought I was going to die. I wanted to die. I thought I'd failed you, and I thought . . ." He trailed off and shook his head quickly. "I would have wandered the earth for five hundred years, to have been there when you came out on your side. Don't you know that?"

Kagome couldn't help the small smile that surfaced on her face. "I'm glad you didn't have to." Her smile faded, though, when she recalled what Shippou had told her, about how Kikyou had sacrificed her life for InuYasha's happiness—for her happiness.

"I know what happened to Kikyou," he admitted softly. Kagome gasped. "It's all right. This time, it was her choice to make. I mean, I wish she could have lived out her life, as she should have done. But I can't be sorry that I got to come to you."

Kagome blinked back tears that welled up in her eyes, blurring her vision as she tried to smile at him. His stomach growled, and he flinched. Kagome laughed and started to crawl over InuYasha, with the intent of making him something to eat. He caught her hips. She gasped softly at how quickly his emotions changed. That heady expression had returned to his gaze, and she felt the heat explode inside her again.

"You're hungry, aren't you?" she asked as he pulled her down to kiss him.

"Yeah," he admitted as he raked his fangs over her throat. She shivered.

"I'll make you something. What do you want?" It was a struggle for her to speak.

"Fuck the food," he growled as he nipped at her earlobe. "It can wait."

". . . Okay," she agreed as her eyes drifted closed.

Who needed food, anyway?