InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Trust ❯ Chapter 13

Thanks again to those who have read, and those who have reviewed. I never imagined my little story would inspire the reviews I've gotten.

Sprout129---Yeah, I'll answer questions. Why not? What does it mean that Inu Yasha tells Kagome that they are meant to be, instead of that he loves her? Umm..yeah. I did that on purpose. You can be sure it will be addressed again later.

Chapter 13

"He did what?!?" Nzinga all but shrieked later on in the baths. Sango nodded, face still red.

"Oh, he's good." She looked impressed.

"What do you mean?" Sango asked.

"That man is dangerous. He obviously understands how sensitive a woman's neck can be. A kiss at that point would have been more intimate, but a caress to the neck is seductive. He's really good." Nzinga looked impressed.

Sango sunk deeper into the water, pensive. "You think he's trying to seduce me?"

Nzinga slapped the water, splashing and startling her friend. "Sango. You're inexperienced, not stupid. He is obviously trying to attract your interest."

Sango looked down, not meeting her friend's eyes.

"Sango…" she looked up at the serious note in Nzinga's voice. "Do you love him?"

"Do you love Sesshomaru?" she countered.

Both women looked at each other, then sighed.

"Look at us," Sango muttered. "We're a mess."

"Really." Her friend agreed.

Kagome slept late, due to her exhaustion. In fact, she might have slept later if it had not been for Inu Yasha's fuming. She ignored the wrath traveling their Bond for as long as she could, but she eventually gave in and got out of bed.

"Would you mind not being so loud?" she sent pointedly.

The emotions dimmed, but they were now tinged with irritation aimed at her.

Whatever. She went about dressing. She figured Sango must be up by now, and decided to go to breakfast. She joined both her foster sister and Nzinga at their table. Inu Yasha came in a little while after that.

He met her eyes from across the hall, and she could feel guilt trickling through their Bond. "You still look tired."

"I'm fine." She belied this with a yawn. "I'll be fine." She corrected.

She got no response, so assumed he must have accepted her reply.

"I think I'm going back to sleep." Nzinga announced. "I don't know why I woke so early."

"I know what you mean." Sango said. "My body would not let me stay in bed."

Kagome looked up in pleased surprise as her father approached the table, and stood up to embrace him. "Father!"

"Kagome. Sango, Nzinga." The Commander greeted them, embracing his foster daughter and foster daughter. "Are you all well?"

They all nodded in response.

"Good. I believe we have a few weeks before Naraku's main forces reach us. That gives us enough time to evacuate any non-fighters and shore up our defenses. In the meantime, recover your strength. I know it was a hard march back." He smiled slightly. "In the meantime, there is talk of celebrating the return of the last fighters we sent out. Kouga and Shaya's groups have been back for a few days, and Jaken's group sent word that they would be here by mid-afternoon."

"Is that wise, Commander?" Sango asked.

"I see no harm in it. Every fighter here knows not to let festivities make them unfit for duty. Besides," he paused, "this has been the first happy news in a while. I cannot bring myself to keep people from rejoicing in it."

He nodded to them all, then walked off.

"Another party?" Nzinga remarked. She looked at her two friends. "So…whatever shall we wear?"

Identical smiles spread across the others' faces. Across the room, Miroku saw and felt a chill go down his back.

"They are plotting again, Inu Yasha. Inu Yasha? Cousin…"

As they had just returned from a mission, none of the women had been assigned any duties in the fort that day. This left them free to occupy themselves as they chose. The celebration would essentially be a more elaborate dinner than usual. Excessive drinking would be frowned upon, although not prohibited outright. All fighters knew the expectation was that they were fit for duty, no matter what.

Kagome and Sango went to their chambers to start looking through their clothes to decide what to wear for dinner. Bringing all their choices out into their shared sitting room, they began the long process of narrowing it down.

"I hope Zi wakes up and helps us soon, like she said." Sango remarked, eyeing the heavy brocade gown in her hands with distaste.

"Well, I guess she needed the sleep. She did have a point, though. The daily schedule we keep is completely different from feline body rhythms. I suppose panthers sleep as much as any other cat. She said she if she was able to sleep enough for the next day or so, she would be fine for the next few weeks." Kagome responded.

Sango nodded, then threw up her hands in disgust. "Look at this! I don't have anything suitable. Everything is either fit for a young girl or an old maid."

"Well, we could have gotten you clothes before, but you were never interested. We can check the stores and see if there is anything there that we can alter to fit you." Kagome suggested.

"Alright. But let's go through what you have first so that you are settled at least." Sango agreed.

An hour later, the room was covered in clothes, but they had settled on a bright amber-gold outfit for Kagome. Sango thought it brought out highlights in Kagome's dark hair and warmed her skin, not to mention being a match for Inu Yasha's eyes. The tunic was ankle length, and slit to mid thigh on both sides. The top clung to her and left much of her back bare. Underneath, she wore a matching pair of pants.

Almost bouncing in their excitement, the two women made their way to the clothing stores. This is where all of the fabric and clothing bought for the fort was kept. It was mostly just cloth, but there were a few ready-made items there as well. The elderly man in charge of the stores greeted them, and asked them to just let him know what they took so that he could record it in the log.

There were bolts and bales of fabric stacked in every direction. Most were local wool, but there was also linen, silks and cotton from further away. Kagome and Sango separated to search more quickly.

Kagome found a dark green gown that she thought would become Sango, and hung it carefully over one arm. She was finding lots of fabric that would suit her friend, but there was not enough time to make a gown for tonight. It would have to be something already made that could be altered.

Sango was having similar luck. Nothing already made was catching her interest. Just as she was about to give up, a dark fabric in the corner reflected a bit of light and attracted her attention. Tugging on the bolt of fabric, she managed to bring it more into the light. It was a beautifully woven dark red satin that made her catch her breath.

"Dammit!" she swore to herself. It was gorgeous, but there was not enough time to make anything from it. Maybe she could have something made for later, at least. It looked like she was out of luck for this evening. She went to move it back into its place when she noticed another form that had been placed behind it. Pulling it out, it seemed to be a bulky wad of cotton cloth.

"Sango!" Kagome called, sounding close. "Did you find anything?"

"Not really," she sighed. "Although I did find a beautiful fabric that I may be able to use for later."

"I'll be right there. Keep talking so I can find you." Kagome said.

"It looks like silk…or satin…I never knew what the difference was. It's a beautiful dark red, but I don't know if I would ever have the nerve to wear such a daring color anywhere." Sango kept up a steady stream of sound in order to guide her friend through the storeroom.

"Let me see." Kagome's head popped around the corner. She gasped in appreciation. "Oh, it's satin. You have to take some for yourself. But what is that you're holding?"

"I'm not sure…it was behind the satin." Sango looked at the bundle in her hand more closely. "It just looks like a wad of fabric."

"I think that's wrapped around something else. Try to open it." Kagome urged.

Sango turned the bundle in her hands around until she found a flap. "Oh, it looks like you're right." Unwrapping it, she found a small square of the red fabric in the bolt.

"Oh, I hope this is something I can wear…" Sango held up the fabric and shook it out. It was wrinkled, but definitely recognizable as a gown.

"Let's take it upstairs and you can try it on. Unless you want to keep looking?" The other woman looked at her expectantly.

"No." Sango said firmly. "I'm ready to get out of this storeroom."

After checking in with the clerk and having their acquisitions logged, they made their way back to their rooms. On the way, they stopped at Nzinga's to see if she had yet woken up. She was awake, although barely, and told her friends she would meet them shortly.

True to her word, the older woman showed up a few minutes later, as Sango was trying on the first green gown that Kagome found for her. Although pretty, it was clear that it was not what Sango wanted. She then held up the red gown up against herself.

"You can't go wrong with that color." Nzinga stated, while Kagome nodded in agreement. "Even with it being that wrinkled, we can get an idea when you try it on."

Sango put on the gown, and turned to her friends. Kagome stopped speaking mid sentence and both she and Nzinga stared for a few seconds.

"That's it!" Nzinga jumped up from her seat. "You are wearing that tonight."

"Sango, you look beautiful!" Kagome rushed over to hug her friend. Sango let out the breath she had been holding.

"I need a mirror…I'm not sure how comfortable I am with a sleeveless gown…" she sounded unsure.

"It's too warm for sleeves." Kagome dismissed her friend's concerns. "Come over to the mirror."

Sango walked over to the fill length mirror and gasped at the sight of herself. The gown was cut rather modestly-there was no plunging neckline or revealing back. But the fabric shaped itself to her curves. It clung to her breasts and curved in at her waist before following the flare of her hips. From there, it opened into a full skirt that swept down to her ankles. Even with the wrinkles, she could tell it was becoming.

"So? What do you think?" Kagome asked gently.

Sango had trouble speaking. "I love it…but I don't know if I will have the nerve to wear it in public tonight."

"We'll make sure you do." Kagome said with uncharacteristic firmness. Nzinga nodded in agreement. "Now take it off so we can get it down to the laundry. They need time to press it…and it could be taken in a bit as well."

As Sango got back into her regular clothing, Kagome then turned to her other friend. "So what are you wearing?"

Nzinga responded with a lazy shrug. "I don't know yet."

"Well, you've got to find something! It's only---"

"Lunch." Nzinga pronounced. "It's only lunch. I still have time."

"Is it lunch already?" Sango said, surprised.

"Yes…how about we drop off your gown then go eat?"

The laundresses were more then happy to press Sango's gown for that evening, especially since she never asked for anything special. After a promise to come by and show off their festival wear, the three women left for the noon meal.

Inu Yasha and Miroku had spent part of their morning conferring with the Commander. After they had given their impressions of the mission, they left Sesshomaru, the Commander and men from the villages alone to continue to plan.

"I cannot believe you are not worried after what happened last time." Miroku stated firmly. "Those women are plotting again, I know it."

"Don't you ever get tired of talking?" His cousin sighed.

Miroku kept on stubbornly. "We have yet to see them this morning."

"We saw them at breakfast."

"Well, not since then."

"We've been in that fucking meeting."

"Well…" Miroku seemed disinclined to give up. "I still think they are planning something."

"Stop talking! Worry about it when it fucking happens, and stop trying to ruin my day." Inu Yasha slapped his cousin on the back. "Let's go to lunch."

The women were already eating when the two entered the dining hall. Kagome saw them enter and waved them over. Inu Yasha slid into the seat next to his mate, and Miroku took the seat across from Sango. Taking a plate, Kagome began to fill it with foods she knew Inu Yasha liked.

"Is my father still meeting with people from the villages?" she asked, handing it to him.

He nodded as he bit into a ham steak. "Yeah…all fucking morning. I don't envy him."

"Did you hear about the dinner tonight? They want to celebrate our safe return." Kagome directed her question to the two cousins.

"Another party?" Miroku looked interested.

"Keh!" Inu Yasha said, with a mouth full of food. "I will never know how you got to be a monk."

"We've been through this, cousin." Miroku heaved a long-suffering sigh.

"And so have we." Nzinga interjected, with a hard look at Inu Yasha. "Do you mind not spraying your damn food all over the table? That's disgusting. Wait till you've swallowed to speak."

"Hmmph." Was his only response.

Kagome hurried to change the subject. "We still have to find you something to wear tonight, Nzinga."

Zi waved one hand, unconcerned. "I told you, don't worry about it. I'll find something."

"Why are you making a big deal about it? You didn't wear anything special the last time." Inu Yasha asked.

"That was a last minute gathering. We actually know about this one. Trust me, you'll be thankful that we did." Kagome giggled.

Inu Yasha looked perplexed, while Miroku looked interested. "I can hardly wait."

The women shook their heads, while Inu Yasha narrowed his eyes at his cousin. "You better watch those fucking hands tonight, monk. Don't say you weren't warned."

As the cousins argued, Nzinga continued to eat. The bread was fresh and soft, the cheese flavorful, and the dried fruits still sweet. Much better than the food on the trail…and it had been more than a week since she had been able to cook at Sango's home. She was not going to let Inu Yasha and Miroku distract her from good food. She reached for a piece of beef…so good.

"Are you pregnant or something?" Inu Yasha's interjection cut into her reverie.

"No." She snapped. "Do I smell pregnant?"

"Well, you're eating like you are." He insisted.

"I'm just enjoying the food." She said through gritted teeth.

"It's a lot of fucking food." He would not stop.

"Kagome." Her dark head snapped up. "Please do something about your mate."

Kagome looked from her oblivious mate to the seething woman down the table and decided to avert the building explosion.

"Inu Yasha, have you finished eating? Let's go up to the wall."

"I'm not done." He blinked as she slapped meat between two pieces of bread, shoved it at him and all but dragged him from the table.

"I'll meet you two back at our room later," she called over her shoulder.

"A sensitive subject, I take it?" Miroku asked.

"Leave me alone." She muttered.

Sango sighed. "Are you ready to go?"

"Since I will now be painfully conscious of every bite I eat, I suppose I should." Nzinga answered.

"I look forward to seeing you this evening then." Miroku said as the two women walked away.