All Inuyasha characters are ©Rumiko Takahashi, Viz Communications, Inc., Shonen Sunday, Sunrise, Yomiuri TV and Nihon TV. Characters are used without the express prior permission of the aforementioned. Story concept, other characters and original situations are ©L-desu; this fanfic is written for entertainment purposes only.
Written for the SessKag Festival 2024.
Day 2: Shrine
Kagome tried smiling encouragingly at the man standing next to her at the base of the shrine stairs. She didn’t see what the big deal was; they had been dating exclusively for six months now; in her mind, this was the natural next step in their relationship. It wasn’t as if her family didn’t already know who he was, even though they’d never met before. But they knew and loved Inuyasha, so why not him, too?
“Are you ready?”
Sesshoumaru stared apprehensively up the long flight of concrete steps towards her childhood home. One second… Two seconds… Three–
“No.”
Kagome rolled her eyes dramatically, exhaling a long suffering sigh at him. “What’s wrong? It’s only my family,” she asked for the umpteenth time.
The former demon lord merely shrugged a single shoulder at her, posture still tense. Leave it to Sesshoumaru to suddenly convert back to one-worded sentences whenever he was anxious or upset. She reached out, waiting for her to take his hand, but he remained as still as a marble statue, refusing to look at her. She tried to loop her arm around his to lead him up the stairs, but he moved as much as a granite mountain.
Finally giving up, Kagome sighed and plopped down on a lower step, resting her chin on fist and knee. Still, he refused to look at her, only continuing to stare blankly up at the shrine above them, leaving her completely baffled.
She studied Sesshoumaru, looking for clues as to why he seemed terrified of going to meet her family. He hadn’t changed too much in the past five-hundred years. Despite his lack of facial markings–thanks to a clever glamour he wore–he still sported his signature long silver locks, though a bit shorter than it used to be. His eyes sported a few fine age lines around the edges, and the irises were darkened by the glamour to a light hazel colour, which didn’t look as out of place in modern times as his natural bright gold would have been. Sometimes, she wondered how Inuyasha had gotten away without concealing his eyes all those years ago. Perhaps it had something to do with his gruff attitude that kept most people from even approaching him. That brought a small chuckle out of her.
That laugh finally did it, breaking Sesshoumaru out of whatever self-induced hell he had put himself into, as he shifted to glare down at her.
“I fail to see how any of this is amusing,” the tall demon groused. It was pretty remarkable how tall he was now; even in her tallest heels, she barely reached up to his shoulders. He had once said that he was now the same height that his father had been before he had died. Maybe height was something daiyoukai obtained after centuries of living.
Kagome canted her head slightly to the side as she averted her gaze, her hair falling off her shoulder as she bared a portion of her neck to him. His eyes narrowed slightly at her, but she knew he appreciated the gesture. It was a sign of submission in dogs, and it only helped her case when she assured him that she hadn’t been laughing at him.
“Will you tell me what’s wrong?” she asked softly, patting the step next to her. It was late enough in the early evening that most people were either already at dinner with their loved ones or on their way home, the streets slowly emptying in this quieter district of Tokyou.
Sesshoumaru hesitated a moment before he gracefully lowered himself to sit next to her, their legs touching. She took his body language as a good sign; if he was truly upset, he would have sat further away. Leaning into him slightly, she gave him comfort while she waited for him to talk. He wasn’t the best conversationalist, but she had learned patience since reuniting with him all those months ago.
Minutes ticked by as they watched the sun set over the metropolis, and she was content to simply watch as people, cars and bicycles passed them by, some glancing curiously over at the two of them sitting in silence.
Finally, Sesshoumraru shifted in his seat and dropped his head slightly, a heavy sigh escaping him. “Rin,” was all he said.
Rin. Something to do with his young ward from Sengoku Jidai. She had learned from Inuyasha that Sesshoumaru’s former ward had eventually chosen to continue living in the growing village next to Inuyasha’s Forest and the Bone Eater’s Well, and that she had ended up finding love with the headmaster’s youngest son, giving birth to a fine family that ultimately ended up marrying into Miroku and Sango’s family.
Sesshoumaru had never spoken of his young ward since they became reacquainted, even though she had asked after the young woman once. Sesshoumaru had given a fairly noncommittal answer to her question, only stating that “she had lived”, and nothing more. So she had dropped the subject, getting the feeling that the topic made him uncomfortable.
But now, Kagome could see that there was, in fact, more to the story than what her best friend had told her. And whatever it was, it was affecting their relationship to the point where she couldn’t seem to get him to meet her family.
She waited, willing him to continue, to elaborate. She tried her very best to be patient with him, since she could see that whatever this was, it seemed to weigh heavily on his shoulders. But time kept ticking by–the skies got darker, and the lampposts lining the nearly vacant street turned on.
At last, she could wait no longer.
Kagome stood up and turned to face him–her former demon lord, her youkai lover. Her sudden movement had surprised him, and he looked up at her in confusion, forehead creased slightly as he silently asked her what she was doing. After six months of happiness by his side, she could definitely read his non-verbal tells now.
Kagome reached out to him, noting the lost look in his eyes as she gently cupped his face, thumbs softly tracing the pattern of his stripes that she knew so intimately.
“I want to help,” she said to him softly, willing her love to shine through her eyes to him. “I want to know. Will you tell me?”
What should have been golden eyes staring up at her shuttered for a brief moment, and her heart ached. But soon, he was looking back at her again, and the pressure in her chest lessened at the look in his eyes. Trust. Faith. Love?
Sesshoumaru pulled her in closer, nuzzling his nose against her stomach as he took a deep breath in and wrapped his arms around her waist.
“Rin,” he repeated, though this time, she could hear the sadness in his voice. “I failed her.”
That shocked her. Never in her life would she have thought to ever hear those words from him. Sesshoumaru had adored Rin; he had cared for and sheltered the little girl, protected her, even saving her life twice against all of the odds. How could he possibly have failed the young girl?
Kagome carded her hands through his long silken hair, nails scraping soothingly at his scalp, just like she knew he loved so much. Patience.
She was rewarded when he started speaking again, though he kept his face buried against her front, as though he were too ashamed for her to see his emotions. Silly daiyoukai; there was hardly anything he could say or do that would affect how she saw him. He should know that by now.
But he spoke, at long last, telling her of how Rin came to remain in Kaede’s village after she had disappeared into the meidou. Sesshoumaru told her of Rin’s youthful infatuation with Kohaku, Sango’s younger brother, and how he had forbidden Rin to seek out the boy’s affections. Though Kohaku was a strong warrior, Sesshoumaru had been of the opinion that Rin was much too young to be married yet.
And Rin had obeyed him, living life quietly with an unrequited love, made worse when the slayer, so much older than Rin, ended up marrying another girl and moving away. Rin had been heartbroken, but she never blamed Sesshoumaru, for to her, her lord was infallible.
A few more years passed and Rin, now a beautiful grown woman, caught the eye of the headmaster’s youngest son. Once more, Rin asked for her lord’s favour, but was once again denied. No one was good enough for his ward, his daughter. But now, Rin was older, and she felt that she had a right to decide her own fate, despite her lord’s wishes. So she married the headmaster’s son without his consent, and in his anger, he left her behind to live her life without his protection, refusing to visit her anymore.
Many decades later, he had learned from his brother that she had passed away, surrounded by her family and friends. Everyone she had ever loved, except for him. She had wished for him on her deathbed, but he never came. He never came to her because he hadn’t known she was sick, that she was dying. Inuyasha had tried to find him, but he had been away on the mainland dealing with trade disputes. By the time the news reached him, it was too late. His daughter was gone.
Kagome’s heart broke with him, silent tears falling for him that he would not allow himself to shed. She knew how keenly he still felt his loss. Rin had been the first thing–person–who had broken through the walls he had built around his heart after his own father’s death. He should have been there for her, despite everything. And he would never forgive himself.
But, what did that have to do with meeting her family? She must have asked that aloud, for he finally lifted his head, and her heart twisted again at the agony she saw deep within his eyes.
“It is not your family that deters me,” Sesshoumaru answered, his voice roughened with his grief. “It is the shrine. Rin is buried here.”
Understanding finally shone through the clouds, and Kagome knew what needed to happen.
Running her hands down his face, she cupped his cheeks again, running her fingers over his stripes as she kissed him soundly on the mouth, pouring her love for him into it.
Pulling back, she gave him her best level look. “Let’s go say goodbye to Rin-chan,” she told him in a soft but determined voice. “Together,” and she kissed him again.
Slowly, she felt Sesshoumaru’s tension ease, and he finally nodded his assent. He stood, absently dusting off his clothes, and together, hand in hand, they walked up the shrine steps.
Together.
– Finis. –