This is my entry for TangerineDream's Second Annual Fanfiction tournament. (http://www.dokuga.com/forum/29-challenges/64798-second-annual-fanfiction-tournament)
I do not own IY or its characters, nor do I make any kind of profit from this. I write purely for fun.
Title: Bald Angels or How To Set The Young Ones Up
Round Four: pilgarlic
Paired with: naqaashi
Genre: Romance
AU/CU: AU
Rating: T, just in case
My thanks to Smortz who took time to beta this.
I'd love to read your opinions of my story so please, review. But remember to vote by sending TangerineDream a PM. And remember to read naq's story as well.
I post this before naq, but with her permission, due our time difference. Please make sure to read her story before voting.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Bald Angels or How To Set The Young Ones Up
The night was starry.
That's what Kagome would later say, if someone asked her what she remembered from that day. The rest of the day was kind of blurry, except the starry evening, the gentle touch and kiss, and a bald man. Those were clear memories even after all these years.
It also was a bedtime story her kids asked time after time, just like tonight.
~~~
A dark-haired girl sat on a bench in a park. It was getting dark, and she kept glancing at her wristwatch. She was nervously shifting and looking around as if searching for someone. Her eyes were blue and bright with slowly gathering tears. It seemed obvious that she had been stood up. Again.
Kagome sighed. Now she knew it was Kikyo's week at her father's again. For the only reason Inuyasha would be so “distracted” would be because Kikyo had once again showed up on his doorstep, fluttering her eyelashes and giving free shows of her “virtues”.
Well, it was nothing new really. Though she and Inuyasha had been friends since kindergarten, he seemed to be smitten with the Kikyo and practically ignored Kagome and their other friends when Kikyo was visiting her father after he moved into town.
There were tears in Kagome's eyes. Not because Inuyasha was with Kikyo. Oh, no, never that. It had been painfully obvious ever since they had first met, that Inuyasha would always love only Kikyo. The high school crush she had for the brash boy had ended almost as soon as it had started. But she remained a faithful friend.
If there was anything Kagome hated, it was the disregard her friend showed quite regularly. If his plans changed, he didn't let her know. No, he forgot about her totally. Then, the next morning would come, and he would come running back to her feet, begging for forgiveness and spoiling her with tickets to theater and concerts he knew she liked.
What did bother her more was how little their friendship seemed to matter to the boy. He didn't bother to call and tell her that their plans were off. He didn't even think that she might get cold, sitting in frozen park, waiting him to show up. He didn't care about anything other than his own happiness.
Too much was too much. Kagome was practically seething. If her silver-haired friend wanted to be in her good book, he had better shape up and learn to let her know if he suddenly got other plans. To her is was no big deal if he wanted to spend time with his first love, but if he really thought he was her friend... Oh, no. This was inexcusable. The last drop. The feather that broke the camel's back.
“He's not coming tonight.”
A sudden voice stated behind her, startling her out of her thoughts. The voice was velvety and smooth, and she knew it very well. Without looking behind, she greeted the speaker.
“Sesshoumaru, what are you doing here at this hour?”
“Hn. I could ask you the same. It's freezing and you're here in that ridiculous excuse of a skirt.” Sesshoumaru, the older half-brother of Inuyasha, huffed and seated himself next to the girl. ”How can you stand waiting in this weather? He's not even coming.”
“Yeah, well. That was kind of obvious half an hour ago.” Kagome said, sighing. “But I was thinking about something and forgot the time.”
“Something serious?” The older of the Taisho brother's asked, curiosity and worry clear in his tone. During the years, he had learned to care this girl a lot. And he was always ready to stay by her side if she needed him. Just like she would stay by him. Something she had always done.
“Well, you could say so.” Kagome said, watching how wind tossed leaves in the gleam of the street lamp. “I just made up my mind. Inu will need to shape up if he wants to continue his friendship. I'm sick and tired of this behavior.”
Sesshoumaru stared at Kagome, not willing to believe his ears. First of all, the girl had been Inuyasha's fiercest defender through the years and a true friend, never leaving his side. Though when it came to the quarrels of him and his half-brother, she always stood neutral, stating that they were both her friends despite who was right.
But for Kagome to say that her friendship with his brash and imbecile half-brother was coming to an end, was something Sesshoumaru had not thought would come to pass. Ever.
“And this is because he's with Kikyo again?” He asked carefully, dreading the answer.
Kagome laughed, throwing her head back.
“Oh, no! As if!” She giggled. “I could care less of who he spends his time with and how.”
A feeling of relief washed over him as he looked at Kagome's face for any sign of deceit. There was none.
“No, it was really clear to me when I first met Kikyo that she was the one for Inuyasha. I would never be able to compete with her. At least not for his feelings. So I stopped trying, all those years ago.” Kagome said, smiling at the silver-haired and amber-eyed man next to her.
”So it's not that he's with her that I'm angry. It's more of the fact that he doesn't consider that I might have something else to do than wait for him in vain. If he would have let me know that he was going to spend the evening with Kikyo instead of me, I could have gone and met my friends, or stay at home with mum and gramps.”
Kagome sighed unhappily.
”He's so into achieving his own happiness that he's inconsiderate to anyone else. Heck, I might even have a boyfriend I would have liked to spend the night with when my plans with Inuyasha were canceled. But does he care? No. Not that I have boyfriend now, but I might want one.” She glanced at Sesshoumaru. ”Hey, Sess, why are you looking so angry?”
A chill had traveled through Sesshoumaru when Kagome mentioned the possibility of a boyfriend. Oh, this woman was going to be the death of him. It seemed he needed to be a little more obvious than he thought he had been in the last three years.
Suddenly, a sound behind the bench alerted them both. An elderly homeless man, who had found a place fore his cardboard box behind the bench for the night, was laughing about something. What was curious was that the two sitting on the bench knew that familiar laugh.
“Myoga!” Kagome and Sesshoumaru shouted.
“Old man, what are you doing in that box? Last time I saw you, you were in a limo with my dad, smiling like a crazy and going on and on about your new business idea.” Sesshoumaru asked, baffled. Myoga was one of the rare business associates of his father that he actually liked. When he, Kagome and Inuyasha had been kids, Myoga had always entertained them during the long hours of boring parties his father insisted on having every winter.
Myoga, who had been laughing at the face of his friend's son when Kagome had mentioned the possibility of a boyfriend, was now scratching the back of his head embarrassed. His eyes were looking everywhere but the two youngsters in front of him.
“Well, you see...” He stuttered, looking small. ” Your father didn't get too excited of that particular idea. And I didn't get anyone else to back me up so I used what money I had and... Well, to tell you the truth, it flopped. Badly.”
Sesshoumaru pinched the bridge of his nose. Was the man really so stupid?
“And you didn't think to ask father why he didn't help? Because I know my father and he doesn't refuse ideas without good reasons.” He said with suffering voice.”You just went ahead and used your money without consulting anyone if the idea was solid enough?”
“Why yes. That's exactly how it went.” The little man's eyes shone bright. ”How did you know, lad?”
Kagome blinked at the old man she had always liked. Then, her mouth started to twitch suspiciously. She turned her back to the men, and Sesshoumaru could see her shoulders shaking violently. He himself was not in much better shape and it took all the will power he had to keep his face straight and voice even.
“You really are as pilgarlic as ever, you know that, Myoga?” He said. ”Give father a call on Monday and tell him to do me a favor and teach you to do business.”
Then he turned his back to the old man and took off to the entrance of the park, motioning for Kagome to follow him. They walked fast and didn't stop until they passed the gates of the park. There, he stopped and turned to Kagome, who was panting from the fast pace.
Kagome took one glance at her friend and held his gaze for a second or two before they both burst out laughing. They laughed until there were tears in Kagome's eyes. She wiped them away while giggling and looked at Sesshoumaru, who had suddenly gone quiet.
Sesshoumaru had been watching Kagome and thought how beautiful she looked. The laughter had always been his favorite part about the girl in front of him, but right now she was the most beautiful woman in the world for him. Then, he remembered what Kagome had said earlier in the park. His heart dropped to his stomach.
“What's the matter, Sess?” Kagome asked.
“Were you serious, earlier?” He said, not looking at her.
“About what?”
“About you getting yourself a boyfriend?”
That got Kagome's attention.
“Well, you know...It's not... I mean...” She stuttered, blushing furiously. Her eyes shifted nervously in the dimly lit street they were standing on.
“Well?” Sesshoumaru pressed, feeling a surge of hope rush through him. He took a step forward.
“Uh, well... you see... I'm.. I did not really...” Kagome didn't get any further when two hands touched her face, and her lips were devoured by Sesshoumaru's hard and hot ones.
The kiss was over almost as soon as it had started, but left a tingling feeling on her lips. Kagome opened her eyes, that she had not noticed had closed, and stared into the amber eyes of her long time friend and secret crush, too stunned to speak.
“You... will not seek a boyfriend.” He said, still holding her face with his hands and brushing her lips with his thumb. “The only one I could ever deem good enough for you is me. So you will stop seeking.”
Kagome blinked. Twice. Did he just say what she thought he did? This must have been a dream.
Sesshoumaru got frustrated when the woman of his dreams was just staring at him, blankly. He decided to goad the answer out of her and proceeded to kiss Kagome again. This time he was pouring every bit of his feelings and passion into it.
Kagome could do nothing but feel. The kiss was everything she had ever wished a kiss to be. It was gentle, but also demanding, filled with passion, lust and love... And she answered to it with just as much passion and love of her own. The world could have ended right there and then and she might not have noticed a single thing.
When the kiss ended it was only because they both needed air desperately. Sesshoumaru leaned his forehead against Kagome's and they were both panting.
“Can I please have your answer?” He said, a little breathlessly. Oh how he wished she would consent. He could not, would not be able to act like nothing happened. Not after tonight. Not after that kiss.
His feelings must have shown in his eyes because a slow smile spread to Kagome's lips.
“I'll stop seeking....” The smile grew mischievous. “If you say the magic words.”
It was now Sesshoumaru's turn to blink. The magic words? He looked at the blue eyes in front of him and knew the answer. He leaned forward until his lips were inches away from hers and whispered something he had never before said to anyone.
“I love you.”
The kiss was all the answer he needed.
~~~
Two figures stood in the shadows near the entrance looking at the couple locked in a blissful kiss. The taller of the two patted the shoulder of the shorter one and made a gesture of leaving the place. The smaller figure followed it and they discussed quietly on their way.
“Your son is too smart for his own good, you know, old friend. He almost made me talk myself into the corner.” Shorter one said.
“Yes, well. He is my son after all.” If there had been onlookers they would have seen the taller man, identified as Sesshoumaru's father, Mr Taisho, buffing his chest in a very comical way.
Shorter man chuckled. “Indeed he is. But I must say, he's better at insulting people. Pilgarlic. That's something I haven't heard in years. And that was from your first wife by the way. Now she was fierce with her words.”
There was awe in the little man's voice as he spoke. “And while I must say your plan was good, to make them see each other in a certain light, it was useless I tell you.”
“Useless?” Mr Taisho almost bellowed. “Myoga, my plans are never useless!”
“Is that so?” A sly grin spread to bald-headed man's face. “In case you missed it, when Kagome spoke about a possible boyfriend, your son was ready to rip some heads off. All we got from your little plan was that I'm able to spend time with those dear children again. They would have sorted their feelings out by themselves tonight anyway.”
With that, Myoga continued to the shadows of the park, leaving a stunned silver-haired man standing there.
”Oh, and by the way, you owe me a bottle of good, strong Merlot.”
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
A/N According to my dictionary pilgarlic means a) a bald-headed man, b) someone pitied or mock pitied. Somehow they remind me of Myoga all the way. And well, only Sesshoumaru could be intelligent enough to use that word in BOTH meanings at once, don't ya think.
Anyway, I had fun writing this, hopefully you did enjoy it too.