Adult-FanFiction.org : Inuyasha / Yashahime

Worth Waiting For
By : inumom
Category: InuYasha > General
Views: 6484 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha, nor make money from this story.
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Disclaimer: No, I still don�t own them, but I can dream�.

AN: Lots of adolescent angst here, but nothing really unexpected. There are times when I think that they both need to be whacked with a big stick!

2. Matchmakers, Matchmakers

�You�re home early, dear. Is anything wrong?�
Kagome looked up in surprise at her mother�s soft question. Glancing at her watch, she realized that it was only barely nine-thirty. Shaking her head, she smiled wryly. �Not really, Mama. I just wasn�t having that good a time.�
The older woman smiled. �That�s not really surprising, is it?� Patting the sofa cushion next to her, she continued, �Sit down. I think we need to talk.�
When her daughter settled onto the sofa, she continued, �Now, why do you suppose you didn�t really enjoy the party?�
Kagome shook her head. �I don�t know. I guess I�m tired of all their matchmaking efforts. I mean, I appreciate the thought, but honestly--Houjou? I mean, he�s a nice guy and all, but he�s not right for me.�
�Of course, you�ve told him this?�
She nodded thoughtfully. �Sort of. I mean, I�ve been doing everything I can think of to discourage him short of just telling him to get lost since middle school--he just doesn�t seem to want to take the hint.�
�Why do you think that he�s not quite right for you?�
�I don�t know,� she said, shaking her head in frustration. �He�s very sweet, and polite, and kind, and he worries about all my �illnesses,� but there�s something not quite right about him.�
�Maybe,� the older woman said, �What you really want is something exactly the opposite of young Houjou.�
Exactly the opposite? What on earth was she talking about? �Why on earth would I want somebody who�s rude, inconsiderate, and self-center�.� Her voice trailed off as she realized where her mother was taking the conversation. �Forget it, Mama. It�s not like that at all. After all, he has his dead miko: the only thing he needs me for is to locate the pieces of the Shikon no Tama. Once that�s done, I won�t be needed there any--� She suddenly collapsed into her mother�s arms, sobbing at the sudden realization that she loved the hanyou from the past more than anything in either of their worlds.
The older woman stroked her daughter�s hair silently, waiting for the tears to stop. �I bet he gave you a hard time about coming back here for Eri�s party, didn�t he?�
The smile on the girl�s tear-streaked face was bitter. �He always does. Why should this time be any different?�
�Has it ever occurred to you that there�s probably a reason why he makes such a fuss every time you come home?�
The bitterness in the girl�s voice matched that in her expression. �Of course there is. Every minute I spend here is a minute I�m not scrounging around the countryside hunting for Shikon shards so he can use the jewel to become a full youkai.�
The woman shook her head in something like sympathy. Obviously, Kagome was too close to both the situation and her own anger to see the entire picture. �Why don�t you take a couple of days off, dear? I�m sure things will look better with a couple of good nights� sleep behind you.�
The younger woman shook her head slowly, looking at the floor. �He won�t let me--he�ll probably be here just after daybreak tomorrow to take me back.�
Standing up, she gestured her daughter to the stairs leading up to her room. �Let me take care of that. Now, go up to bed--you�ve had a pretty hard day.�

*

Inuyasha had few options, so he sought out the closest thing to a kindred spirit he could find among his friends. Barging into Kaede�s small house in the village, he grabbed the monk by the shoulder of his robes and hustled him out the door. �I need to talk to you, monk.�
Though not exactly pleased to be dragged away from his quiet talk with the old miko, Miroku was intrigued all the same. Once well away from the village proper, he asked, �What is it, Inuyasha?�
The hanyou dropped to the ground, staring at the snow-covered earth before him. �I think it�s over, Miroku. Why the hell would she want to come back here anyway?�
�So, that�s what this is all about!� The monk managed to hide his smirk completely. �There are a lot of things here that she cares about--collecting the Shikon shards, the people in the village, Sango, Shippou, me. She even cares about you, although I can�t honestly understand why.�
The other shook his head, ears flattened. �I don�t think so. Why the hell would she want anything to do with me after the way I�ve been all this time?�
Miroku sat down on the ground--this was obviously not going to be easy. �I don�t know. I do know that she has the biggest heart and purest spirit of anyone I�ve ever met. Give her the chance, and she�ll forgive you for practically anything.� He shot the hanyou a brief, irritated glance. �You care about her, don�t you?�
The words seemed almost torn from him. �More than anything, the damn jewel included. Hell, I haven�t really given a damn about that thing for a couple of years now. It�s just an excuse to keep her here with me. What�s your point?�
The monk thought for a few moments, then continued, �If you have problems with telling her how you feel, maybe you would do better to show her.�
�What do you expect me to do--grab her like you do every female you meet?� Maybe the lecherous monk wasn�t the very best possible person to ask for advice. The hanyou stood up, rubbing at the mangled skin over the knuckles of his right hand, and walked back in the direction of the village. �Maybe,� he said, �This was a mistake. Forget I mentioned it.�

*

He sat outside the window for a long moment, peering into the darkness. Observing that nothing was moving within the confines of the room, he eased the window open and slipped silently inside. Moving with the grace of his youkai heritage, he stepped to the side of the bed, breathing deeply to catch all the nuances of the human girl�s scent. She was--as usual--in excellent health, with no injuries, but had been crying: the salty scent of her tears hung heavy in the air. Most important of all, she had not been touched by any other male while away from him. Reaching down with a single clawed finger, he brushed the stray hair away from her eyelids, noting with a sober expression the traces of the tears she had shed on her creamy skin.
He was so preoccupied with his examination of the girl that he failed to notice that they were not alone. A slight movement near the door alerted him to the presence of the woman who had been waiting for him ever since the girl had finally fallen asleep. Before he could make his escape back out the window through which he had entered, the woman spoke quietly, fully aware that he could hear every word. �We need to talk, dear. Close the window and come downstairs.�
Realizing that this conversation could provide him with just the kind of help he had been needing, the hanyou silently closed the window, then followed the woman out of the room and down the stairs. He sat in the pleasant kitchen rather uncomfortably while he watched her make tea and set out a large plate of chocolate chip cookies--one of his favorites that Kagome had introduced him to--on the table. Finally, she sat down across form him and began, �As I said, we have to talk.�
He looked down guiltily at the clawed hands resting on the surface of the table. �What did Kagome tell you?�
The woman shook her head. �Nothing, actually, but I can tell when she�s unhappy and upset, and she was both when she came home yesterday. Would you like to explain why that is?�
He looked up into the woman�s compassionate gaze. �We had a fight. She wanted to come back here to go to some festival with her friends, and I wanted her to stay there�.� He decided not to add the natural conclusion, �With me.�
She handed him the plate of cookies, and he wasn�t about to offend her by refusing them. He bit into a cookie, not really tasting it, as she continued, �Exactly why were you so determined to keep her there?�
He didn�t really have to think about his answer. After all, he had admitted as much to Miroku, Sango, and Kaede earlier in the day. �I hate it when she leaves me. I can�t rest, or eat, or anything when she�s gone. I don�t know what I�ll do when the Shikon is complete and she comes back here to stay.�
She gave him a sudden sharp look. �Have you told Kagome any of this?�
He shook his head miserably. �I don�t know how.�
From what her daughter had told her and her own observations of him on those occasions when he had come to visit, she understood exactly how much these admissions were costing him. �Exactly what do you want from my daughter?�
He stared into his lap, his voice small. �I want to be with her for the rest of my life. I�d be human for her if she wanted it that way. I want her to be my mate and the mother of my pups some day. But,� he said, his voice sinking to a whisper, �She wouldn�t want me.�
The woman looked up in surprise. �What on earth makes you say that?�
�You know what I am. I�m just a hanyou--too youkai to be trusted by humans and too human to be respected by youkai. In my world, that�s about as low as it gets. I�m unclean, an abomination that shouldn�t have been allowed to exist. If Kagome were to become my mate, she�d be an outcast, shunned by humans and hunted by youkai. How could I ask her to live that kind of life?�
�She�s told me a lot about you and the other people she knows in your world. It seems to me that you�ve become pretty well respected by the human village. You�re also strong--strong enough to keep your family safe from whatever might come along. Now,� she said, �What makes you think that my daughter wouldn�t want you?�
He shook his head. �Look at me. I�m no good at all that sugary-sweet crap. She�s probably told you how I yell at her and fight with her all the time. I know I�m no match for that guy she has here--the one who�s always bringing her things and talking to her. She deserves somebody who can care for her like that.�
The woman smiled. �You mean Houjou? Trust me when I say that Houjou doesn�t stand a chance with her--he�s kind, considerate, and sweet, but he�s not what Kagome wants, or needs. She needs somebody who can stand up to her, who will force her to do what needs to be done whether or not she wants to, who can tell her when she�s being stubborn or unreasonable.� She shook her head slowly. �What she wants,� she said, reaching out to pat his hand, �Is you.�
�I have to talk to her.�
The woman nodded slowly. �You certainly do. Exactly what do you have in mind?�
He fished a worn paperback book out from inside his haori. �One of our friends in my world gave this to me. She said Kagome gave her this--it�s something called a �romance novel.� She said it might help me understand what women from this world expect in a mate.�
The woman�s lips twitched as she tried not to laugh out loud. She took the book from the young man sitting across the table. �Trust me: this is pure fantasy--people don�t really behave like this. I only have one suggestion--listen to your heart. It will steer you a lot straighter than this will.� She considered briefly. �Look, you can�t talk to her right now: if you do, you�ll only end up fighting again. Her eighteenth birthday is in just over two weeks. I have an idea. I want you to go back to your world and stay there until after dark that night. I�ll make sure that her friends leave at a reasonable hour. Once she goes up to her room, you can go in and talk to her. Come in the front door--I�ll have some flowers for you to take to her.�
He shook his head. �No. I don�t understand much about how things work here, but that sounds expensive. I can�t accept anything like that.�
�Listen to me,� she said, �You�ve been taking care of my daughter for nearly three years. You�ve kept her alive through I don�t know how many battles and I don�t even want to know what else. Getting a few flowers is the least I can do.� She stood up, pulling two sheets from the calendar on the wall and bringing them to the table. She marked one of the boxes on the first page. �This is the day that�s just starting. This,� she said, marking a box on the second page, �Is the date of her birthday. That�s when I want you to come back. Don�t forget to mark off a square every day so you don�t lose track of the time.�
Stuffing the calendar pages and the book back inside his haori, he nodded slowly and left by the front door, looking sadly up at the dark window as he made his way back to the well house.
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Worth Waiting For	By : inumom Category: InuYasha > General Views: 6484 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha, nor make money from this story.

Worth Waiting For