InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Short Straw ❯ Chapter three ( Chapter 3 )

This will be the last disclaimer as I'm sure we all know by now that I DO NOT own Inuyasha. And most likely never will. And am going to go cry in a corner now because it's not mine. @---`---

I'll shut up now…

The Short Straw

By Flamingwillows

Chapter three

The last time anyone could remember Koga and Miroku setting foot inside a church was three years past, when their mother was laid to rest beside her husband. So their arrival on this fine spring morning created a buzz of talk as people wondered what had caused their sudden attack of piety.

The speculation was already well advanced by the time Kagome's family arrived. Naraku had a firm belief that God rewarded not merely godliness but punctuality. But this morning Kagura had been unable to find a particular hair ribbon and their departure had been delayed while the house was searched for the missing item. Though the ribbon was found in Kagura's reticule, exactly where she'd apparently put it, the blame for their lateness had somehow fallen on Kagome and she'd been treated to a telling silence on the carriage ride.

She was actually grateful for the opportunity to review the decision she'd made the night before. Though she'd tried desperately to find some flaw in the plan, none presented itself. No matter how she looked at it, marrying Hojo seemed to be the best option available to her. He was a respectable man, a kind man even. She'd be a foolish girl indeed to turn him away.

So, when Hojo greeted them today, she'd put on her very best smile for him and try to look as if the prospect of wedding a man with cold hands and four small children filled her with something other than dread.

But the whispered buzz that hummed through the small church pushed all thoughts of Hojo momentarily aside. Of course, even without the whispers running through the pews, Kagome would have noticed them. The brothers sat in the front pew, next to the aisle. Broad shoulders beneath black coats, dark hair worn a bit long for complete respectability- especially the older one, whose ponytail hung almost as far down his back as Kagome's hair did. Even from the back, they drew a woman's eyes.

It was doubtful that anyone paid much attention to Reverend Kaede's sermon that day. Kagome certainly couldn't have repeated a word of it.

When the sermon ended, the murmured amens were perfunctory, everyone's mind occupied with things of more immediate interest than the hereafter.

It was normal practice for people to linger in front of the church, complimenting the minister on her sermon. On this particular Sunday there was only one topic of conversation among the womenfolk- what had brought Koga and Miroku to church after all this time. And though the men pretended to be above such common speculation, it didn't stop their eyes from sliding over to where they stood talking to Reverend Kaede.

Yuka Kurosaki suggested that they'd come to repent their sins in the eyes of the Lord. But no one who looked at either brother- and everyone was looking at them- could give much credence to that theory. Neither of them looked as if they felt the need for repentance. There was too much confidence in they way they moved, too much arrogance in the way they carried themselves.

Perhaps they were lonely, Ayumi Mudou said. After all, they were orphans, alone and without family. Her soft eyes teared up, her face crumpling with sympathy. Kagome had no doubt that Ayumi would try to take them under her wing, regardless of the fact that they were grown men and probably as old, if not older than she herself. But they didn't look as though they needed Ayumi's wing, nor anyone else's for that matter.

Kagome'd never actually seen either Koga or Miroku but, like most people in Black Dog, she knew who they were. They owned the largest ranch in the area, a ranch their father had begun and that they'd continued to build after his death. Their patronage kept half the businesses in town in the chips. She knew Hojo's store depended in large part on orders from them.

But she wasn't thinking of Hojo as she watched the brothers talking to Reverend Kaede. Though there was a resemblance between them, it was the taller and older of the two who drew her eyes He looked dangerous, she thought, studying his profile. A strong chin, piercing eyes, his high ponytail trailing down his back- there was something just a little untamed about him. And the gun that rested so snugly at his hip. Not that he was the only man wearing a gun- this was still a wild land in many ways, after all, and most men went armed. It wasn't the presence of the gun, but the ease with which he wore it that was so shocking.

As if sensing her gaze, he turned his head abruptly and their eyes met across the packed dirt of the churchyard. He was too far away for her to see the color of his eyes but she felt the impact of that look all the way to her toes. She knew she should look away, that it wasn't ladylike to stare, but she couldn't drag her gaze from his.

"Stop staring like a cheap tart. Try to at least pretend you're a lady." Kikyo hissed in her ear. Kagome gasped as her aunt's fingers found the tender flesh on the back of her arm in a vicious pinch. She lowered her lashes to conceal quick tears of pain. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Kagura smirk with pleasure and had to restrain a most unladylike urge to slap her smug face.

~ ~ ~*~ ~ ~

"What I've got in mind is a gentle girl, one who won't be too demanding," Koga said. "I've got enough on my hands with the ranch work. I don't want a wife who expects me to dance attendance on her."

Reverend Kaede had known Koga and Miroku since the family had first moved to Black Dog after the war. She'd been a friend of their mother and father's, and she'd often thought Hakkaku would have been proud of the way his sons had kept the ranch going after his death, fulfilling his dream. She was fond of these boys- men, she corrected herself, looking up at the two of them. She'd been pleased to see them at church this morning, but her pleasure had rapidly turned to dismay as she'd listened to Koga coolly outline his plan to find a wife.

"I don't want to waste a lot of time," Koga was saying now. "Spring's a busy time, what with calving and all."

"Finding a wife isn't like buying a horse, Koga." Kaede protested.

"Buying a horse would be a damn sight easier," Miroku put in, grinning at his older brother. "Just check the bloodlines, look at the teeth, take it for a ride and you know what you're getting. Too bad you can't do the same with a woman."

"Well, you can't." Kaede snapped. She dabbed at the beads of sweat on her forehead. The mild spring sunshine suddenly felt uncomfortable warm.

"It can't be that hard, Kaede," Koga said, looking impatient. "People get married all the time."

"Yes, but they generally spend some time getting to know one another. They court. A man doesn't just pick out a bride like. . .like. . ."

"Like picking out a horse?" Miroku supplied helpfully.

"Exactly."

"I don't have time for courting, and we can get to know each other after the wedding. As long as she doesn't have the temper of a wolverine or a face like a mud fence, we'll do fine. I need a wife, not a best friend."

"But. . ." Kaede sputtered and dabbed the handkerchief frantically over her forehead. Ho could she possibly explain the impossibility of what Koga wanted?

"There must be some unmarried females in town," Koga said, skimming the crowd, unconcerned with the interest he was receiving in return.

"Yes," Kaede admitted cautiously.

"What about the redhead in the blue dress?" Koga asked, narrowing his eyes on the statuesque girl.

"Kaen Haku." Kaede supplied, following Koga's gaze. Sensing their eyes on her, the girl lifted her chin. "I don't think she's what you're looking for, Koga. Kaen is a bit, er, high strung." she said delicately.

"Temper like a hungry grizzly?" Miroku asked shrewdly.

"Well, er, yes," Kaede admitted, sighing.

"What about the little one with the dark hair? The one wearing the green dress and the ugly hat?" Koga asked.

"Kagome Higarashi." Kaede's eyes widened in surprise.

"She taken?"

"Not that I know of."

"Ain't much to her," Miroku commented. "What about the flashy one next to her?"

"That's her cousin, Kagura."

"Too wide between the eyes," Koga said critically. "Reminds me of that mule we had in Virginia, the one that'd try to bite anything that came within reach."

Kaede choked on swallowed laughter, trying to imagine Kagura's reaction to hearing herself compared to a bad-tempered mule.

"Why don't you introduce us to a few possibilities?" Koga asked his parent's old friend.

Kagome watched discreetly as Reverend Kaede began introducing the brothers around. Her eyes lingered on the taller one and she felt her heart beat a little faster when he smiled at something his brother said. His teeth gleamed white against his tanned features and she thought she'd never seen a man as handsome.

"I'd hoped to see you today, Miss Higarashi." Hojo stepped in front of her, blocking her view of Reverend Kaede and her companions. She'd been so caught up in watching them that she hadn't even noticed Hojo greeting her aunt and uncle.

"Hojo," she smiled at him and resisted the urge to peer around him to see were Koga and Miroku were.

"You look very pretty today, Miss Kagome, if you don't mind me saying so." Hojo flushed a little.

`Thank you, Hojo." He was lying through his teeth, of course. The mint green dress she had on was a remade castoff of Kagura's, and neither the color nor the style suited her. Not to mention the appallingly ugly hat Aunt Kikyo had purchased for her the week before. The brim dripped with ribbon roses and fat bows and made her look like an overdressed mushroom.

"I knew that hat would look a picture on you."

"This hat?" Kagome lifted her hand to touch the dispised headgear, her attention fully on Hojo for the first time. "Aunt Kikyo bought it from you?"

"Yes," Hojo smiled happily. "As soon as I saw it, I thought of you."

"You did?"

"Yes." His smile widened. "I'm so glad to see you like it."

"It's. . .lovely," Kagome said weakly. It was also the only hat she owned, at least until she could refurbish last year's bonnet. The tattered condition of that item was the only reason she'd forced herself to don the hat at all.

"I've often thought it remarkable how close one can feel to someone with whom one shares one's tastes, even in such small and unimportant things as styles of dress." Hojo said, his eyes focused intently on her face.

Kagome stared at him, groping for an appropriate reply. Should she admit, right up front, that she despised the hat in question? If she did, would that end the possibility of Hojo being a suitor for her hand? Did she care? To her relief, she was saved the necessity of a reply by Reverend Kaede's arrival.

"Naraku. I'd like to introduce you to some friends of mine. This is Koga Sukanami, and his brother, Miroku."

Hojo was instantly forgotten. Kagome felt her pulse suddenly beating much to fast in the base of her throat. Koga Sukanami. She rolled it around in her mind and decided that she'd never heard one she'd like more.

"We've already met," Uncle Naraku was saying as he shook hands with both men. "Dealings with the bank, of course. Haven't seen either of you in quite a while. "How'd your place come through the winter? Did you lose much stock?" He looked ready to settle into a lengthy discussion of ranching but a subtle nudge from his wife reminded him of his duties. "Oh, excuse me. Allow me to introduce my wife, Kikyo, and my daughter, Kagura." he said, pride evident in both voice and expression.

Koga nodded and smiled at Kagura, and Kagome felt something close to despair. No doubt he'd be dazzled by Kagura's beauty, just as every other man was.

"Mr. Sukanami. And Mr. Sukanami." Kagura smiled sweetly. "I'm pleased to meet you."

"The feeling is mutual."

Kagome felt unreasonably pleased that it was Miroku and not Koga who gave her cousin that assurance.

"We haven't seen you at church before, have we?" Kagura asked, widening her crimson eyes.

We haven't attended much lately," Koga said, and Kagome felt the deep richness of his voice slide over her skin.

"I hope you mean to change that," Kagura said.

"Now Kagura, Mr. Sukanami is going to think you're being bold." Her mother's voice was too indulgent to be called a scold.

"I was just thinking of the importance of tending to one's immortal soul, Mama." Kagura thrust her lower lip out ever so slightly in the pretty pout she'd spent hours perfecting.

"Very admirable of you," Reverend Kaede said dryly.

"Is this another daughter?" Koga asked, turning to look directly at Kagome.

"My brother-in-law's child." Naraku's tone was flat. "We took her in when he was killed a few years ago."

There was an awkward little pause, and Kagome felt the color rise to her cheeks. Her uncle couldn't have made it more clear that she was an unwanted burden, hardly worth noticing. Tears of embarrassment burned the backs of her eyes.

"Kagome, this is Koga Sukanami. His brother, Miroku." Reverend Kaede hurried to fill the silence when it became clear that neither her aunt nor her uncle had any interest in introducing her. "Kagome Higurashi."

"Pleased to meet you, Miss Higurashi."

Kagome raised her eyes to meet Koga's gaze, oblivious to his brother's equally, polite greeting. Up close, he was even more overwhelming than he'd seemed from across the churchyard. His eyes were cerulean blue. They sparkled like zircons against his tanned skin.

"Mr. Sukanami," The whispered acknowledgement was all she could get out. Her heart was pounding against her breastbone, making her voice breathless. She could barely hear Koga's greeting to Hojo over the sound of her own pulse in her ears. Then he turned back to her and smiled and she felt her knees go weak.

"Have you lived in Black Dog long, Miss Higurashi?"

"Six years, four months and twelve days," she answered, without thinking. She saw his eyebrows shoot up and immediately wished she could catch the words back. She'd kept track of the days like a prisoner counting out her sentence, but she'd never intended to reveal as much to anyone. Least of all Koga Sukanami.

There was a moment of shocked silence, then Kagura giggled. "You shouldn't tease Mr. Sukanami, Kagome. Why, it almost sounds as if you haven't been happy with us."

"I didn't mean that at all," Kagome mumbled, lowering her lashes to conceal the rebellion in her eyes. She'd get an earful from Aunt Kikyo later, she knew. And heaven knew what Koga must have thought of her.

The awkward moment was interrupted by the arrival of Sango Kurata. Kagome felt a twinge of annoyance. Sango was her best friend, and ordinarily she would have welcomed her presence. But on this occasion Kagome couldn't help but feel that Kagura's sharp, sophisticated beauty overshadowed her enough without the addition of Sango's softer yet exotic good looks. Guilt over the selfish thought made her smile all the more warmly as she turned to include Sango into their little group.

Reverend Kaede made the introductions. Kagome watched in resignation, sure that Koga would be completely smitten by Sango's raven hair, heart-shaped face and exquisite dark eyes. That's a troublesome girl there, mark my words, Aunt Kikyo had said darkly when Sango first moved to Black Dog and was living on her own.. But a conventional woman or not, the healthy condition of Sango's bank balance assured her a place in the town's small society, even if her charm and generosity hadn't already done so.

Better Koga be smitten with Sango than Kagura, Kagome thought. Better almost anyone than Kagura. By the time the minister had finished the introductions, Kagome was already envisioning the wedding with herself as a heartbroken but noble bridesmaid.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance, Miss Kurata," Koga said, looking polite but not overly smitten.

"It's Mrs. Kurata," Sango corrected, smiling in a way that made her eyes shine. "I'm a widow these two years past."

"You must have been a child bride," Miroku said his eyes blatantly admiring Sango's trim figure.

"I'll take that as a compliment, Mr. Sukanami."

"It was intended as such, Mrs. Kurata." He responded with a grin that might have made Kagome's heart flutter if it hadn't already been beating double-time in response to his brother's proximity.

A glance at Kikyo's face showed that she was less than pleased about this addition to their small group. While she'd rather have eaten nails than acknowledge that anyone could overshadow her precious Kagura, there was no denying Sango Kurata's charms.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Reverend Kaede and her companions moved on. Instantly two of Kikyo's acquaintances swooped upon them, wanting to hear every word that had been said.

"What charming young men," Kikyo said, her superior look only slightly spoiled by the pleased flush on her cheekbones.

"What did they say?" Ayumi Mudou demanded, her small nose quivering with eagerness.

"We merely exchanged a few pleasantries," Kikyo said, trying to look as if she wasn't enjoying being the center of attention. Sango and Kagome exchanged an amused look.

"But why did Reverend Kaede bring them to meet you in particular?" That was Yuka Kurosaki, blunt spoken as always. If her husband hadn't owned half the bank, she wouldn't have a friend in the world. Kikyo stiffened at the question, her smile tightening into something near a grimace.

"I'm sure the Sukanamis wanted to meet my Kagura," Kikyo said through tight lips.

"Isn't it obvious they've decided to take their rightful positions in our little society? Naturally they'll be interested in finding wives, and my Kagura is the prettiest girl in town," she admitted with an air of false modesty that clashed with her smug tone. She sighed and put on a regretful look. "Of course, if your Eri hadn't run off last fall, she might have given my Kagura a run for her money."

Yuka flushed an unbecoming shade of purple, and Kagome found herself almost admiring her aunt's ability to find the most vulnerable place in which to slide the barb. Everyone knew about Eri Kurosaki running off with the corset salesman, but few people would have dared to mention the incident to her face. Since Naraku owned the other half of the bank, Kikyo felt within safe striking distance of such a blow.

"Kagura is such a pretty girl," Ayumi said hastily, her soft voice filling the taut silence. "It would hardly be a surprise if one of the Sukanami boys came courting."

"I wouldn't wonder if both of them came courting," Kikyo said, forsaking modesty for maternal pride.

Kagome watched Kagura preen, and ground her teeth together. Just the thought of her spiteful little cousin clinging to Koga's arm made her want to plant her foot firmly in Kagura's rear end.

Since I really only have a last name for one character- Kagome, I just sorta swiped names from other animes. Kurosaki is from Hisoka of Yami no Matsuei, Mudou is from Sara and Setsuna Mudou from Angel sanctuary, Kurata is Sana from Kodocha and Sukanami is Taka's last name from FY OAV's. I would have used names more fitting the American setting, but Koga McLain and Sango Smith and Kikyo Brooks just didn't sound right. Kaen Haku is paying a brief visit (aka authoress's patented random character insert technique) from Fushigi Yugi.