The Costume by Aki

Part 1

Aki's Note: I tend to be a slow writer, so I've got a TON of fics backlogged on my computer that I don't want to post because I don't feel I have enough chapters. xD So, I'm going to post them anyways, just bare in mind that I'm a slower writer at the moment, since school is totally killin' the Aki. This is also my first attempt at something semi-serious... so... It might suck. XD

Title: The Costume

Warnings: Fluff, OOC, blah blah blah. xD

~PART I~

It was one of her favorite holidays, dressing up in costume, fun masquerade themed parties, and handing out candy to kids. A minuscule smile decorated her lips and a tiny glint lit up her eyes. In her hands, the miko held a small pumpkin her mother had given her a few days ago while getting supplies for her yellow backpack. InuYasha had complained that she didn’t spend enough time with the group looking for shards since she’d started to live with Sesshoumaru in his castle-sized home.

The young girl cast her earthly gaze at the estate, completely in love with its ethereal beauty. Stark white walls seemed to reach straight into the sky, almost as if they were built to challenge the gods themselves. Windows taller than she was were also located all over the walls; bringing in a perfect amount of light to brighten the interiors. Ice blue ceramic tiled decorated the rooftops, a place where Kagome loved to sneak up to in the middle of the night to stare at the lovely moon whenever it as full. It was so much closer to the earth compared to the time she was born in; the larger lunar orb had made her feel plenty better the first, daunting night she’d been at the Taisho Manor.

It was rather like a maze; with at least thirty rooms, Kagome close to always needed a servant to show her around the grounds.

Sitting in the room her boyfriend had given her, the one linked directly to his own, Kagome felt at a slight unease all alone. Boyfriend. Suddenly, the word floated around her mind, reminding her of the Lord’s proposal to her.

“I intend to make you my mate, Kagome.”

The stoic frown on his face that night had been cold, but his eyes were filled with untold desires and needs; something the dear eighteen year old thought she’d never see in a man’s gaze aimed at herself. Her answer to his arrogant statement that night had been the right one to make.

“Not right off the bat, Sesshoumaru. I need time with you before I decide that.”

And strangely enough, he’d granted her that time. Upon the agreement, he made his desire to have her live with him clear; and she’d agreed, and three weeks later, life was wonderful. They hadn’t consummated their relationship; he’d been adamant about keeping his distance in a sexual way as to avoid her making the decision to mate with him out of sexual desire. She was happy with that, and they’d been able to do so much together! Walks in his garden, talks that lasted all night, visits to Kaede’s hut to see her friends; anything she wanted to do, he’d let her. And with a smile on her face and butterflies in her stomach, she always enjoyed the company offered by the Lord of the Western Lands.

But all the present week, there was the knowledge of something that made the powerful miko very sad. She missed one very important holiday to her, besides Christmas and her birthday. Going back home three days earlier to get a few feminine things she needed and had run out of had made her realize that Halloween was this very day!

It didn’t seem so, but Kagome relished in Halloween. Back when she was still a normal teenaged girl, she always made a big deal out of it; dressing up as a miko had been her favorite thing to do, if only she had realized how ironic that was at the time. Dances were her favorite on that night; a chance to unwind

“Kagome-neesan!” The youthful cheery voice that could only belong to one special girl stirred Kagome out of her depressing thoughts of missing her favorite mischievous night of the whole year and brought her to the reality she stayed present in.

“Good morning, Rin!” She smiled and looked to the doorway of her room, seeing two adorable children, one human, the other a kitsune yokai. Happily wide emerald and honey eyes greeted the young woman in their usual genki delight. “‘Morning, Shippo!”

The two kids ran over themselves to get to their new mother figure’s bed, jumping up and down, excitedly planning out their day together, giving Kagome only a split second to dwell on the day’s meaning before she was forced out of her comfortable bed that had been custom made to fit her description of her bed back home to get dressed for breakfast.

“God, I love this thing!” Kagome chuckled and patted the goose feather mattress before jumping up with energetic gusto and heading towards her closet, her two children on her heels. “So much more comfortable than the one I have at home, in my time.”

“Is it filled with rocks?” Rin asked, posing a funny question.

“No, silly!” Shippo wasn’t one to hold back an answer about their almost-mama’s world when he knew about it. “They have little bits of metal in them!”

“Oh!” The little girl exclaimed, clasping her hands over her mouth. “That must have been so painful to sleep on, Kagome-neesan!”

Kagome shook her head and grinned at Rin’s concern while flipping through the various kimono’s she had. Pulling two out of her walk in wardrobe, she turned around to face the kids, knowing they’d love to help her pick something out.

“Which one is more me, guys?” She asked sweetly. Holding up the first one, Rin seemed happy with the black background giving way to sakura trees in full bloom and a beautiful pink silk obi to accent the look. Shippo seemed more pleased with the ice blue kimono, with the special lotus blossom embroidered on it with real gold thread, and a forest green obi to represent plant life.

The two of the turned to one another and mumbled to themselves. Their potential mother stood in her place, knowing the argument wouldn’t take long, and Rin was more likely to win.

“We like the black one more, Kagome-chan!” Shippo grinned and gave her a thumbs up before turning back to his new best friend. “We better go so Kagome-chan can change, Rin!”

“Uh-huh!” The raven haired little girl giggled and ran from the room, Shippo in tow. “We’ll be back, Kagome-neesan!”

Giving her a few moments of peace, Kagome slipped out of her satin soft night gown and unraveled the obi, setting it on her bed. The kimono was soft to the touch, and strangely smelled like fire and... pumpkin? Frowning, Kagome took a second deep inhale through her nostrils, allowing the smell to penetrate her senses, and bring her back to the days when she’d carve jack-o-lanterns and decorate the shrine with them. Her mother had thought it was adorably fitting, as Kagome always loved to be a little witch when she was a toddler, the love of playing a witch soon turned into the love of dressing the part of a miko in Kagome’s later years.

Her carvings would always come out uneven and goopy; her mother would always only let the little girl use a butterknife to cut through to the bulky mass of the orange fruit’s skin. Setting a candle inside and lighting it in the house with the lights out would always lit up Kagome’s smile as she got up and danced to the candle light on Halloween night.

Smiling at the silliness of her youth, Kagome stepped into the fabric and folded the right side of the smooth fabric over her chest before folding in the left. She had made the mistake her first night at the manor of folding right over left, and a few of the servants almost fainted at the sight. The clueless woman had forgotten only corpses ready for burial wore their kimono right over left.

Securely tying her obi in place, she closed the wardrobe door and folded her night gown  before gently placing it on her bed, knowing Kimiko, one of the servants, would be there to collect it in a few hours.

“Okay guys,” She opened her bedroom door and stepped outside into the brightly lit corridor, thanks to the windows overhead, pouring in the morning sunshine. “Let’s go eat some breakfast!”

Practically dragged by both of her hands, the three of them happily walked through the large estate to what Sesshoumaru called the “casual” dining room. Upon entering, Kagome couldn’t help but think that her boyfriend’s entire full demon form could fit in it and still be comfortable! It sported a long, western style table (the Western Lord preferred the higher seating arrangements and had told her it also helped make anyone he wished feel uncomfortable in his presence if that was the desired effect he wished to have) with close to thirty seats all together before a darkly stained cherry table.

It didn’t take long for her eyes to spot him already sitting at the head of the table, in the largest chair, embroidered with silver accents that made his silver white hair stand out even more. His back was turned to her, but that didn’t stop his superior senses. Lord Sesshoumaru immediately stood from his chair, turning around to face the newest occupants of the dining hall. His eyes were closed, as if showing the full amount of respect that someone of his position could offer.

“Ohayou, Otousaan!” Those closed eyes snapped open with shock as the little Rin jumped into his lone arm, knowing he’d catch her and hold her close.

“Rin,” His voice was soft and still, reminding Kagome of a sakura petal drifting on a tranquil stream. “It is good to see you fairing so well this morning.”

Setting her down next to him, he patted her on the head as she latched onto his right hakama leg, clutching the white fabric like a security blanket. A mild expression on his face, he lifted his full attention to the young woman standing silently, enjoying the exchange between father figure and adopted daughter.

Kagome froze as his lips formed a frown and his nose wrinkled. His eyebrows knitted into a tidy v on his forehead as he turned to the stunned miko, who prayed he wasn’t upset with her for something.

His expression never changed as he walked slowly towards her. Lifting his only hand, the taiyokai’s frown deepened as he ran a claw over the neck stitching of her kimono.

“Where did you find this, Kagome?” Her name on his lips always sent a chill up her spine. Knowing such a cold and dangerous demon was so intrigued by plain old Kagome was one of the wonders of the world, maybe she’d figure that out one day.

“Uh..” Oh great, perfect way to answer a question. She couldn’t help but be distracted by his eyes; and how smoldering they really were. If she ever saw liquid gold, the substance would look exactly like his eyes whenever he looked at her. His heated gaze would always make her heart stutter a few beats before finally settling into a regular pattern again. “It was in the wardrobe.... I really love the patten... and so do the kids.”

Her points were meager, and she didn’t place any confidence in them; had she put on a kimono that belonged to someone else and got mixed up in her closet? If that was the case, Kagome saw no problem in marching back to her room and changing into a different one.

Silence was greeted to her explanation, and she stood in her spot as she felt her youkai’s claws slightly scrape her skin, careful not to break and let his poison seep into her veins. It was a dangerous action and they both knew it, but every touch of his fingers burned into her skin like a welcomed brand, hitching her breath and causing her to not think straight.

“I can...” She hissed quietly so the children wouldn’t know what was going on. “Change, if you want.”

“No.” His answer was sharp and very adamant. “I do not wish for you to rid yourself of these garments. It is just, you smell of tobacco smoke and pumpkin... This kimono belonged to my mother; she smoked frequently and loved the taste of pumpkin.”

Kagome’s eyes widened in shock. She bit her lip in concern and turned away from the towering Lord.

“I’ll go change, then!” She exclaimed. She tried to run, but that was nearly impossible to do with the motion hindering her leg movement. “I’ll be right back!”

Her actions to attempt and escape to her room her thwarted by a strong hand encasing her wrist. Pausing in mid-step, Kagome was twirled on her feet by that hand to face the tall demon.

“I do not wish for you to change out of this kimono,” He stated. With his clawed index finger, he gently pushed back the fabric belonging to the sleeve of the garment to reveal Kagome’s pale wrist. His head bent down, golden eyes never leaving her own hazel gaze. “I cannot think of anyone else I would want to have that kimono.”

His demonic yellow eyes then slipped closed and his strong lips pressed against the back of her hand in a chaste kiss, lingering on her skin. Tingling sparks swam through the girl’s bloodstream. Her eyes slipped shut against the onslaught of butterfly wings in her body. Her breath hitched as he pulled her flesh against his body.

“I hope that soon, your own scent will diminish hers,” His voice was low and his chest rumbled against Kagome’s cheek. “I enjoy the way you smell.”

He buried his nose in her hair and deeply inhaled against her hair.

“Strawberries.” It was a simple observation, but the miko found it to be extremely flattering and embarrassing. “And...mint.”

“My lord!” The couple was startled out of their small exchange of affection to see one of Sesshoumaru’s servants peeking into the dining room. Kagome recognized him as Kakeru; the only human in the demon’s staff. Kagome had felt strange being the only human in the entire manor, so Sesshoumaru had hired a human from the local village closet to his home.

“What is it, Kakeru?” He asked. His full intimidating attention was pulled to the twenty something year old man and the light haired human seemed to shake where he stood.

“There... is a package for you.” He entered the room slowly, a tiny black silk wrapped item in tow.

“Is this the request I placed earlier this week?” The lord asked. The servant nodded and was excused from the room, Sesshoumaru pocketed the small wrapped item and it was no longer an issue at all.

“Are you planning to eat breakfast?” He asked. Kagome looked at the table to see steaming hot fish on rice, along with some fresh green tea. She loved the green tea Sesshoumaru always asked to be prepared for her. It was just bitter enough to sting the tongue, but it went down smoothy, reminding Kagome of the best sore throat medicine she could ever get back at her mom’s place.

“Yeah,” She smiled and sat in the chair Sesshoumaru offered. He scooted it in and offered another kiss onto her cheek. “Thanks, Sesshoumaru.”

He paused before rising from his position over her.

“I do enjoy when you use my name,” With an incline of his head, he pointed to the door. “There are papers that I need to tend to, routine documents from various other lords.”

Kagome nodded and smiled after him as the demon lord walked out of the room. Taking a sip of the hot green tea, her first cup had already been poured, Kagome contemplated what she’d do that day. It had been over two weeks since she last sensed a shikon shard’s presence. It was both a relief and a burden at the same time. She was so used to going somewhere in search for a shard, it was strange and extremely difficult to adapt to the calmer lifestyle she now lead. Maybe she’d tell Sesshoumaru she wanted to spend the day with her friends. She definitely didn’t want to spend today alone; no company on Halloween just didn’t work.

“Kagome-neesan? What’s wrong, Kagome-neesan?” Rin inquired over her fish and rice.  Kagome chuckled a bit as she saw bits of rice stuck to the girl’s kimono.

“I’m just thinking Rin-chan better eat slower,” She down to her left, where Rin was sitting, and pulled a piece of that sticky starch off the girl’s clothing. “Sesshoumaru-sama won’t be happy if you keep eating so messy! You’re eleven years old now, aren’t you?”

“Haha,” Rin chuckled and placed her chopsticks gently down onto their holder next to her tea cup. “You’re right, I’m too old to be super messy!”

Taking her napkin, Rin harshly wiped at her orange and creme checkered kimono and smiled when she had gotten rid of her clothing decorations.

“There, all better!” She exclaimed.

“But Kagome-chan,” Shippo frowned and stared at Kagome with his big demon eyes. “You were thinking of something else.”

The oldest woman in the room sighed and shook her head. There really was no lying to kids like she was. They really did have built-in lie detectors, didn’t they?

“Okay guys, you got me,” Kagome grinned and scooped a small lump of rice into her mouth before explaining. “It’s just today is an important day to my back home.”

“Oh?” Rin quipped. “It isn’t your birthday, Kagome-neesan, is it?”

“No no,” Kagome quelled the panicked look Rin held in her eyes. “It’s Halloween today back where I come from.”

“Halloween?” The kids both asked at the same time. “What’s that?”

Kagome shook her head again and tucked her hair behind her ears.

“Well,” She shifted in her seat, getting more comfortable. “It’s a time of the year when everyone who celebrates dresses up in a costume! There’s witches, ghosts, grim reapers, and whatever anyone feels like dressing up as. Little kids can go trick-or-treating to their neighbor’s homes and see if they have candy or treats for them.”

“REALLY?!” Rin shrieked. “Candy... those sweet chocolate slabs and stones you bring from your time for Rin and Shippo?”

“Yeah, Rin!” Shippo exclaimed. “They’re called chocolate bars and sucker candy! Do they really give it out to kids dressed up in your time, Kagome-chan?”

“Yep!” Kagome proclaimed. “And if you’re lucky, one of your friends will invite you to a Halloween party. Those are really fun. Whoever is holding it decorates their home with tons of awesome decorations, like fakes spiders, pumpkins, cauldrons and all sorts of stuff.”

“That sounds so fun, Kagome-neesan!” Rin smiled and the kids exchanged glances when their mother figure wasn’t looking.

“Uh-huh!” Kagome was staring into space, remembering all the fun parties she’d gone to over the years. “And they play music, and you get to dance, and.... Ugh, I miss Halloween.”

“Huh?” Rin blinked up at her. “Why have you been missing it? Can’t you go back and celebrate it?”

Oh the innocence of childhood. Kagome missed it a bit.

“I can’t, sweetie,” Kagome shrugged and scooped another bit of fish and rice into her mouth. “Man, I wish I had vinegar to go with this.”

“Why not? You go through the well all the time to get things.” Shippo pointed out.

“I can’t because I have a responsibility to this time,” Kagome explained. “I can’t go back just to go to a party. What would I do if there’s trouble here and I’m in the future, playing around and having fun? That’s not fair.”

She took another sip of the delicious tea and stared after the kids as they ran from the room.

“Well that sucks,” She commented to herself. “Looks like I’m alone.”

It only took her a few more minutes to finish her breakfast; she was still used to ‘traveling-with-InuYasha’ speed when it came to eating. She always needed to be done first, just in case the half demon begged for more.

“Oh InuYasha,” She mumbled as the servants came to take away the dirtied dishes. “You are a silly one.”

***Not wanting to be alone for long, as the castle like manor her hopeful mate owned was too new to her to feel extremely at ease in. Easing up from the table, she decided to go in search of the demon who’d graciously offered his home to her.

“Hm...” She thought out loud. “I think his study is over here.”

Making her way through the traditional Japanese style home, Kagome spotted his study; large double shoji doors decorated with the same hibiscus crest that he showed on his usual stark white with a touch of red haori. He had never told her to avoid his place of business before, so the young girl thought nothing of opening the door a crack to peek inside and see if her demon lord was busy.

“Okay, Sesshoumaru-sama!” Rin’s voice caught Kagome’s attention. “Don’t worry, we’ll do a good job!”

What is this all about? Kagome asked herself. Without warning, two close to blurs of color zipped passed her out the door, making the priestess extremely dizzy trying to visually keep up with them. Children... More energy than Kagome could handle sometimes.

“Kagome?” Of all the times he knew she was outside or near him, she never actually got used to it. She sheepishly entered the study, cautiously; there was nothing more intimidating than seeing Sesshoumaru at his desk. She’d seen him on the battlefield over and over pitted against InuYasha, but only when she saw him working on official documents that needed to be signed and sent off did he truly intimidate her.

“I didn’t want to bug you,” She muttered. “But I sort of got lonely.”

It was stupid, really. She’d only been alone for less than fifteen minutes, but she couldn’t help it! Eyeing the great lord, she hoped her eyes gave away how she felt, if her aura didn’t; and he was quite the master at reading her. The tiny smirk on his face in her direction helped quell that little nagging voice in the back of her head that told her to go away.

~End Part I~

Aki Note: Hope you like it, can't I can't wait 'till I have the next part written. x3