#skw2020d7

To begin with, the well had reopened, and Kagome had abandoned all the plans she had made for the future in a split-second decision to return to the past.

Secondly, she and Inuyasha, well… It turned out they were the best of friends, but any romantic notions Kagome had once harboured had died a fairly quick death when expectations and reality did not quite manage to meet.

And finally, somehow, she had ended up running an unofficial orphanage in Edo.

It had probably begun because Kagome had been giving lessons to Shippou and Rin, as well as Miroku’s and Sango’s children. 

She’d wanted to fill her days with something productive, but it turned out that growing up in the 20th century didn’t really give you all the skills and knowledge needed to fit into the life in the 16th century.

But the one thing that she did have that most people around her in the village lacked, was comprehensive education.

In hindsight, deciding to put her knowledge into a good use might have been a mistake, Kagome reflected, struggling to tie the obi around the screaming toddler. 

Another young hanyou, twin sister of the charming boy currently preoccupied with throwing his tantrum, tottered in on unsteady feet, then latched onto Kagome’s leg.

Literally.

Kagome winced.

“Momo-chan, sweetheart, please remember to be mindful of your claws,” she told the hanyou girl clinging to her leg.

The girl solemnly looked at where her tiny hands were resting on Kagome’s bare shin, and then carefully eased her hold.

Kagome let out a breath, and as little Mr Cranky Pants was all changed up, set the snarling and shrieking child down.

He kicked his tiny clawed feet against the floor in utter fury, and Kagome had a snapshot of understanding what Inuyasha might have been like as a child. 

She'd probably dodged a bullet there. Imagine her and Inuyasha's offspring, inheriting their temper from both parents!

Not a rosy picture at all, that.

In fact, it suddenly made Shinji-kun seem a veritable little angel.

Or perhaps that title should go to Momo-chan, Kagome amended, as the girl knelt down by her brother and stroked his hair.

Awwww!

Moments like these, Kagome thought, warmth swelling in her chest, were what made it all worthwhile.

But first things first, she really needed to change into a clean kosode herself and wash the baby puke out of her hair.

“Rin?” she called out, hoping the young woman would be free to look after the twins while Kagome made herself presentable again.

All right, so she might have exaggerated a little, earlier. It wasn’t really an unofficial orphanage, and Kagome wasn’t quite running it either.

They had six orphans altogether, and although Kaede, Rin and Kagome were the main caretakers for the children, the whole village pitched in to help where they could.

Even Shippou, who was always a very sought-after playmate whenever he came back to Edo.

Most of the children were human, only the young twins were hanyou. 

The three oldest children, each old enough to look after themselves, for the most part, lived with Kaede and Rin. The arrangement suited all of them, actually, because Kaede was not getting any younger, and the additional help around the house was a huge weight off of her and Rin’s shoulders.

Kagome, meanwhile, had had the dubious honour of looking after the hanyou twins.

The logic there had been that, as a miko, she was the best suited for the task, as most villagers would not be a match for a pair of half-demons, toddlers or not. And unlike Kaede, she was young enough to keep up with the pair.

Kagome, technically, was also taking care of the youngest child, hence the baby puke in her hair.

In practice, though, the infant boy spent a lot of time over at Sango’s and Miroku’s, as Sango had very kindly volunteered to be the little baby boy’s wet nurse.

Rin still had not showed up, but all of a sudden, Shinji-kun’s temper tantrum ended, and the snarling and shrieking stopped.

Ahh, blessed silence, was all that Kagome had time to think before a flare of youki from the edge of the village raised her hackles.

Oh no.

He was back.

And he only ever did that stupid flare thing when he wanted her attention.

And he only ever wanted her attention when…

“Oh god, not another one!” Kagome groaned out lout, exasperation seeping into her very bones.

It was all the miko’s fault.

Sesshoumaru did not know how, but it was the only logical conclusion he could draw.

For years, decades, well over a century, he had wandered far and wide, in perfect solitude. (Jaken didn’t count.) 

But somehow, right after his paths had first crossed with the miko, he had met Rin. 

Eventually, they’d been joined by Kohaku.

After their victory over Naraku, he had parted ways with the both of them and resumed his peaceful lone existence.

And alone he had remained (Jaken still didn’t count), for a blissful three years.

Then the miko had returned.

And once again, inexplicably, he had come across a human child who had insisted on following him.

Then there had been two others, banded together until they stumbled on Sesshoumaru.

Then a pair of young neglected hanyou.

Then he had come across a raided village and had heard the wail of a human infant from among the ruins, tucked away into a safe corner, probably by its now-deceased mother.

Since it was all miko’s fault, Sesshoumaru had decided the children should be her responsibility, not his.

It was a stroke of genius, even if he said it himself.

Like killing two birds with one claw.

From the very start, the miko had been a complete mystery to him.

Not the least because of the mixed signals she was always sending.

It had always been obvious there was some sort of… involvement between the miko and his younger half-brother. Sesshoumaru hadn’t known or hadn’t cared to know the exact nature of it.

Yet, throughout their very loose acquaintance, the miko had been challenging him.

Even upon their first meeting, when she had watched from the side lines while he and Inuyasha had battled over the mastery of Tessaiga in their father’s tomb, the miko had still managed to stand up to him, by yelling advice to Inuyasha.

Then, adding insult to injury, she had been the one to pull their father’s fang out.

At every turn, she had defied him and stood her ground, talked back to him, demanded explanations of him, called him names, never shown fear... Always ready to pitch her will against his.

The miko had shattered his armour with her arrow early on in their acquaintance, and if that hadn’t been a challenge, Sesshoumaru didn’t know what was! Especially when she had promptly fired another arrow at him afterwards! 

So now, at last – and once it had become clear whatever there was between Inuyasha and the miko did not exceed the bounds of friendship – Sesshoumaru had started to challenge her back.

Currently, his preferred method of doing so was depositing the orphans he collected at her doorstep.

And to the miko’s credit, she had risen to the challenge marvellously.

Speaking of…

Sesshoumaru slanted a glance over his shoulder, and at the human boy following after him beside Jaken.

“We are almost there,” he informed them, his voice even.

Soon enough, they could see Edo in the distance.

A small smile rose to Sesshoumaru’s lips.

He was looking forward to the next encounter, eager to see how the miko would respond this time.

Sesshoumaru gathered his youki around himself and then let it flare up, sending a signal to his miko.

He was coming to give her her next challenge.

After finally getting Rin to look after the twins, Kagome marched to the edge of the village, where she immediately assumed a confrontational pose – hands on her hips, blue eyes glaring at Sesshoumaru.

Her gaze flicked to the young boy nervously fidgeting next to Jaken. He was human and looked to be around ten years old.

Kagome swallowed a sigh and turned to the boy.

“Hello, sweetheart. Welcome to Edo, my name is Kagome. I’ll talk to you a little later; for now you’d probably like something to eat, right? Jaken, please take him to Kaede’s.”

The kappa sputtered, but despite the grumbling under his breath, obeyed, telling the boy to follow along as he tottered away.

As soon as the two had left, Kagome whirled back to Sesshoumaru.

“How does this keep happening?” she demanded to know. “Where do you find these children? Why do you keep on bringing them here? I can’t do this anymore Sesshoumaru, I swear! This has gone on long enough!” 

She was pushing into his personal space now, all but wagging her finger at his face in righteous fury.

“I agree,” Sesshoumaru intoned smoothly.

“I’m telling you,” Kagome growled. “...Wait, what?”

“You are correct, miko, that is time to bring this charade to an end. Entertaining though it has been, I suggest it is beyond time for us to formalise our relationship.”

And just like that, Kagome’s anger was gone. Vanished, together with any sense she’d previously had of this entire conversation.

What was the infuriating daiyoukai on about?

“What relationship?” Kagome asked, suddenly apprehensive.

“Do not act coy with me, miko,” Sesshoumaru said, his eyes hooded. “We have been going around these circles for years now.”

“What circles?” Kagome was growing both more alarmed and confused by the second.

“I have presented you with multiple challenges,” Sesshoumaru told her patiently, nodding towards Kaede’s hut. “You have risen to each one and proven yourself brilliantly.”

“Challenges?” Kagome glanced at Kaede’s hut, then her own, then at Sesshoumaru. “You’ve been bringing me children because you’ve wanted to challenge me? What the hell?!”

“In part. Mostly I brought them because of the inconvenience. Nevertheless, I figured you would not be averse to a challenge, now that you and Inuyasha are no longer… involved.”

Flabbergasted. That was the word. That was what Kagome was feeling. Her mind simply wasn’t keeping up with the complete lack of logic of Sesshoumaru’s conversation.

“What does Inuyasha have to do with this?” 

“You have been challenging me since the beginning of our acquaintance,” Sesshoumaru began.

I have? Kagome wondered, trying to think back to see what on Earth Sesshoumaru could be referring to.

Maybe the time she’d had an arrow ready and aimed at him and had shouted the next one would be for his heart?

She grimaced.

“But for the longest time I was not certain if I should respond in kind, especially as Inuyasha had a prior claim,” he continued.

What claim? No. Kagome shook her head. No matter how much the daiyoukai tried to explain, none of this was making any sense.

“However I have now responded to you in kind. And you have proven yourself to me, and I assume likewise my performance whenever you have challenged me has met your approval as well. Thus, I think it is time to stop playing these games and make it official.”

“Make what official, Sesshoumaru?” Kagome snapped losing patience. 

Feeling stupid also didn’t help her temper.

Sesshoumaru blinked, slowly.

“Our mating, of course.”

Kagome’s mouth fell open. No words came out.

She was pretty sure that hell had just frozen over.

Unless…! Maybe?

She pinched herself and hissed in pain.

Nope, still in the middle of this absurd conversation.

She probably should say something.

Ask Sesshoumaru if he had completely lost his damn mind, maybe.

Be firm.

“M-mating?” Kagome squeaked.

Way uncool, Kagome, she chided herself.

Her mind was furiously trying backtrack. Trying to find a previous save point from a time when the world had still made sense.

“Yes,” Sesshoumaru said, unhelpfully, plunging Kagome further into chaos.

“So what you mean by challenging is…?” Kagome asked, in a vain attempt to recover some sanity.

“A typical behaviour of a suitor. How do you know if the object of your interest is truly worthy of your affections if you do not challenge them to prove themselves to you?” Sesshoumaru said, finally sounding unsure of himself

Oh.

The light bulb finally clicked on.

Oh no.

Was Sesshoumaru telling her… That basically the entire time they had known one another… he had thought she’d been flirting with him?

Kagome stared at him in mute horror.

He’d been bringing her orphan children in some convoluted and misguided effort to flirt back?!

Oh god.

“I sense some reluctance from you.” Sesshoumaru frowned.

No shit!

Kagome tried to gather her brain from the floor and scramble it for some sort of sensible words she might offer to Sesshoumaru, but before she could find any, he continued.

“Perhaps I have not proven myself to you yet? Do you wish to issue one last challenge?”

“I… Umm…” were all that Kagome’s poor brain had left to offer.

Sesshoumaru nodded gravely. “Very well. I accept.”

With three quick steps, Sesshoumaru had closed their distance.

All of a sudden, Kagome had to crane her neck in order to meet his eyes.

There was a look there, glimmering in those golden depths, that unnerved her more than this entire disaster of an encounter had.

As he leaned forward, Kagome’s eyes widened, her heart jumped, her stomach plummeted, her breath caught.

And then he was kissing her and… wow.

Wow. 

Okay, maybe this crazy notion of his did have some merit if this was what he had to offer.

His hand had come up to cradle her head. His fingers tangled in her hair, his claws lightly scraped against her scalp.

Whoo, talk about toe-curling.

One eternity later, Sesshoumaru pulled away.

Kagome drew in a quivering breath, her heart beating a mad, giddy rhythm. 

Had he proven himself?

You bet.

Still dazed, she looked into his eyes, the slow beginning of a smile blooming on her lips.

And then Sesshoumaru spoke.

“Are you aware that someone appears to have vomited milk in your hair?”

Ahh, yes.

That.

That they would probably still need to work on.

“Yes, I am,” Kagome retorted. “That tends to happen around babies.”

“Noted,” Sesshoumaru replied, deadpan. “So, have I proven myself sufficiently?”

Kagome bit her lip and took a moment to consider.

“You have proven yourself,” she said slowly. “But I am not ready yet to make our mating official. I think it would be fair if we tried some human courting, first.”

Sesshoumaru tilted his head.

“I suppose that your customs should require equal opportunity,” he admitted, his voice considering. “I must confess, however, that I am woefully ignorant of the ways of human courting practices.”

Kagome gave him a rueful smile.

Just as ignorant as she’d been about youkai flirting, she’d bet. But still, going forward, it would be best to avoid any further confusion and miscommunication.