A Chance Encounter by Celeste

Scene One

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha

a/n---well, here's my first fic for this site. I hope you enjoy it. Just a warning, the rating may change and it takes me a while to update, okay?

It was a beautiful day in Tokyo, perfect for family-bonding time at the park. More than one family was at Tokyo Central Park, making use of the green picnic grounds, large playgrounds, and clear skies. After all, the coming autumn was supposed to be brutal. Wind, rain, and snow sent to torment school teachers, lovers of heat, and single and/or working parents.

Sesshomaru Tashio was one such parent.

Still working through the final details of a messy divorce, he thought it would be nice to see his favorite creature in the whole world smile, even if it was for a short period of time. The little 8 year old was making more friends than a common child would at her age, since she had been blessed with her mother's forwardness. He felt the first smile in months tug at his lips as he watched the brown-haired child clamper over the plastic jungle gym, getting her flowery pink dress caught once or twice on the way up to the slide.

He looked away from his daughter for a moment, silver strands of his long hair brushing over his face as he turned to look at his newest admirer. The young woman was pleasant looking, he supposed, for a human. She had pale red hair, poutey red lips, and wore jeans and a random t-shirt. American, he summarized, possibly on vacation or a business trip.

She gave him a smile, just as a plain-looking man joined her with a big Labrador in tow. The dog instantly assaulted the woman with wet kisses, and the man led them both away. Sesshomaru mentally shrugged and looked back to his daughter, who was running toward him with a clump of flowers clutched in one hand. His smile actually did break through at this. It was amazing how this little neko-inu made him smile for the smallest of reasons. He hadn't even been all that close to her during infancy, but now, he could hardly bare it when his half brother had to take her to school because he was already at the family company headquarters'. This was another amazing thing, since the he and the hanyou hadn't been on speaking terms until just a year passed. Sure, they still fought constantly, but somehow it was more brotherly than enemy. Inu-no Tashio's death had somehow brought the two brothers together, rather than driving them further apart.

Then she tripped. Time seemed to slow down as she fell and landed on the cement walkway. He was on his feet in a second, expecting her to scream, but a young woman got there before the little girl had the chance to draw breath. Sesshomaru rushed to his daughters' side and dropped to his knees where the young woman had pulled the child onto her lap and was examining the damage. It was only a scraped elbow, much to Sesshomaru's relief. The woman carefully held the girl, not even looking at him, and pulled a small first aid kit out of her shoulder bag. She carefully cleaned the cut and put a simple Band-Aid on the wound before setting the child on her feet.

"Better?" asked the woman, giving his daughter a smile, while Sesshomaru stared. His daughter rubbed her tears away and nodded. "Brave girl. Now where'd those flowers go?"

The flowers were still in the girls hand, but the woman made a big show of looking around her for them, coaxing a giggle out of the child.

"Here." said the little girl, holding out her bouquet.

The woman laughed and rumpled the girls' hair. Only then did she acknowledge his presence. She gave him a smile as his daughter nestled into his arms. "Are you her father?"

He nodded, standing with the child still in his arms. "Thank you, woman." He said softly, kissing his daughters forehead. He racked his mind for something nice to do in return. After all, he'd do anything for his little Rin, and anyone that helped her.

The woman got to her feet and dusted off her professional-looking black pants. "She's adorable. You're a lucky man."

She must be a university student, he thought, nodding. She looked over her shoulder, though he couldn't say at what. "I'd better go." She said, flashing a bright smile at Rin. "You be more careful next time. Promise?"

Rin nodded, clutching at his pale grey shirt. The woman chuckled, gave the girl a little wave, turned on her heels and ran up the walkway to a man in a business suite. Rin waved back, calling out a quiet goodbye, and then snuggling up against him. He gave a soft sigh. It was tome to go home.

In his fancy silver Lamborghini Gallando, with Rin sleeping on the back seat, Sesshomaru ran every visible detail of the young woman through his mind. She had been small, almost child-like, while seeming intelligent beyond her years. She had pricing but gentle ice blue eyes and nearly mid-back length black hair. Her form was as un-eye-popping as a human normally was to a youkai, but he couldn't say he wasn't impressed with her boldness around the unappeasable race. She had been an almost odd human girl. Something about her just didn't fit. Humans didn't smell like moon flowers and freshly cut star fruit.

There was a gentle vibrating against his thigh and he quickly whipped his cell phone out of his pocket. He answered with his a less than intimidating phase than usual, "Tashio speaking."

"Mr. Tashio? This is your secretary, Yuna."

Sesshomaru grimaced at her seductive voice. Gods, he disliked this woman! "Yes, Tuna, what is it?"

"That Naraku man came by again looking to join your companies. I told him to sod off." Yuna said, and Sesshomaru could hear typing in the background.

"Good. We don't need another idiot bringing us down. Miroku is still trying to get rid of the partnership with the 7th Bro.s Firm."

"Yes, yes, I know," said Yuna tiredly. "I also called to tell you that I've been offered a better job at another company. Consider this my resignation. This Friday will be my last day."

Sesshomaru couldn't say he was surprised, though it would take a lot to be offered a better job than his secretary. Yuna was lazy, and the position had more work than she had thought. It was about time she quit. "Make sure you get an ad out for your position then. Have a good day, Yuna."

He hung up before the woman could reply. Other than Rin smiling for the first time since one of her little friends' birthday parties, this was the best thing that had happened since his marriage to Kaguya.

"Daddy?" Rin called softly, and he reached back a hand to grasp hers.

"Yes, Rin?"

"I like the nice lady. Who was she?"

The innocent question made Sesshomaru smile slightly. "I don't know, my sweet."

~*~*~

She had seen the little girl begin to fall and it had been reflex to run and patch the child up. She was cute as a button, that was for sure, but that made sense since her father was more than just a little pretty himself. He had long silver hair and eyes that but 14 carrot gold to shame. No way was he human, or kind by nature, but his daughter was just so adorable...

She shook the memory away and looked at the man beside her, driving them back to her mothers' home. He wasn't human either, though less noticeably so. Only his ears gave him away, though she still remembered when he had had a fluffy wolf tail to show his true nature. He was another whole could pull off the long hair look without looking like a hippie.

He must have noticed her gaze, for he turned his black eyes on her and asked, "What?"

She jumped slightly, having been lost in her own thoughts, and gave the wolf demon a smile. "It's nothing, Kouga, I was just thinking."

Kouga set his eyes back on the road. "About that Taiyoukai?"

She giggled, looking out the window. "No. I was thinking about his little girl. Wasn't she just to die for?"

"I will never understand your love of children, Kagome." Kouga sighed as the pulled into the driveway of a Hospice. "Now, go visit your mother. I've got to go to work, or the boss is going to kill me. You'll catch a taxi to Sango's?"

"Yes, father," said Kagome, opening her door once Kouga had brought the car to a stop. "You worry too much, Kouga. I'll see you at dinner. Bye!"

"Don't go catching no diseases, girl!" Kouga called as she closed the door. Kagome just waved and went into the white building. At the front desk she was greeted by one of the many nurses she knew. She continued passed, since she knew exactly where her mother was. And who wouldn't? She was the happiest of the cancer patients here!

"Hi, mom." Kagome said softly upon opening the door. On the hospice bed was the thin and fragile form of her mother, who wore a bright scarf around her head to cover her lack of hair. The pale woman smiled.

"How's life treating you, Kagome?" the woman asked, hitting the button that made her bed move so she could sit up.

"Really well. I helped a little girl today, mom, and she was just the cutest thing..."

Her mother laughed softly. "Well, her mother must have loved you."

"I didn't actually meet her mother. I met her father, though. Oh, mom, you should have seen him. He was obviously a youkai, but Kouga told me he was just a little more powerful than that. And you should have seen how he held his little girl! Oh, they were picture perfect!" said Kagome, dropping into a seat by her mothers' side.

"That's good." Said her mother as Kagome wrapped one of her mothers' hands in her own. "Now, where are you staying tonight?"

"Probably with Sango. It all depends on how evil Miroku is and how obsessive Kouga is." Said Kagome, adjusting her mothers pillow.

"Alright. And is the house sold?"

"Yes, mother."

"And how's Souta doing in that boarding school of his?"

"He'll be heading up next week. He told me he'd come and visit you before he left." Kagome sighed and kissed her mothers hand. Her mother had cancer in her bone marrow, liver, and pancreas, none of which was operational. She wasn't expected to live the rest of the year, since the cancer was now setting in on her brain.

Her mother saw her look and said, "Kagome, we've been talking about this for years now. Nothing is going to save me. You and your brother are going to take the money from the house and find yourselves a nice little apartment. All that money should be enough to get you both into university."

Kagome nodded. She wasn't going to go to university, but she wasn't going to tell her mother that. Why shouldn't she die happy? Right now she was looking into some jobs as a secretary, a librarian, or a daycare lady.

A nurse chose then to come in and ask her to leave so that they could do this and that to her mother. Kagome managed a kiss on the cheek before leaving her mother to the tests. She sighed heavily and wandered back to the entrance of the hospice, being told by a passing nurse that a taxi was outside waiting for her.

Giving the taxi driver her best friends address, Kagome wondered what would happen once her mother passed on.