A Kludge of One Shots by tenchi no mai
Premonitions
This was written in response to Priestess Skye’s challenge.
Theme: Warning
Due: August 09, 2010
Required Word Count: 1500
Actual Word Count: 1827
Universe: Non Canon/Modern Day
Rating: M
Warnings: None
Disclaimer: The characters of InuYasha are not mine, they are the property of Rumiko Takahashi, Shogakukan, Yomiuri TV, Sunrise, and Viz Media. Only the plot to this story and my original characters, Shun and Hayato, are my intellectual property. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Authors Note: A semi-continuation which will, hopefully, resolve the unanswered question from Chapter 22 that so many people were curious about.
‘Italics’ = thoughts
Premonitions
It had started out as every day was wont to do. Rise from bed, get a shower, have a first cup of coffee, then eat breakfast. The day was absolute perfection. The maple trees fairly glowed, a combination of red and orange against the brilliant blue sky, a shade that foretold of the imminent arrival of fall. The clouds were few, but a dazzling white in the warm golden sunshine. A flawlessness that was seldom seen and usually even less appreciated.
Shippo had arrived at the shiro early and brought donuts with him, as well as the newspapers from the delivery box at the gate. It was Saturday and the there were several projects on the “To Do” list that Sesshoumaru hoped to be able to get completed this weekend. Kouga, Ginta and Hakkaku were expected later in the morning, and Bankotsu was already on his way according to Kagome, who was dishing up a hearty breakfast to fuel her favorite ‘men’ until lunchtime.
“Hey, Shun, are we still going to go out to dinner tonight? Remember, you promised earlier in the week.” Kagome snickered when she heard him groan. She knew he had forgotten all about it; the conversations for the last couple days had mostly dealt with the two big chores on the “To Do” list, and getting supplies delivered to the shiro by Friday afternoon. The largest one was going to be replacing the leaking section of roof over the garage and gym. Ginta and Hakkaku were well versed with the procedure, having recently completed a similar job over at Kouga’s place.
“I’m only teasing you! We can go out another night.” She had danced over to Sesshoumaru to give him a hug and kiss along with his breakfast plate. Leaning over his shoulder she blew a kiss to Shun. “It’s okay, I’ve already gotten stuff for dinner out of the freezer.”
Sesshoumaru smirked before he kissed Kagome back. “Well, Shun, you certainly got out of that easy enough.” Digging into the loaded plate he watched as Kagome retrieved her breakfast and coffee to sit next to him. “What do you plan to do this morning, koi?”
“I’m not sure yet, I may work in the garden for a while.” Kagome picked at her eggs and toast, then pushed them around the plate. “And there are always several loads of laundry waiting to be done.”
Shippo cocked his head as he watched Kagome fiddle around with her breakfast. “Are you feeling okay, Kagome?”
Shun shot a warning glare at him over his coffee cup and Shippo blushed as he quickly shoveled some more eggs into his mouth. He couldn’t help it if he was worried about his ‘mother’; he didn’t want to see her slip into another depression. The one time had been bad enough. He would be sure to check with Sesshoumaru and make sure everything was alright before he left to go home this evening.
“I’m fine, Shippo, I’m just not real hungry this morning.” Kagome was on edge for some reason she could not fully understand. The now adult fox nodded as he continued to eat. Shun gave one last glare at Shippo, before returning to his own breakfast, and thinking about the last six or seven weeks.
~Flashback~
After her fainting spell while stitching up Bankotsu’s wound when the teahouse collapsed, Sesshoumaru had been positive she was gravid. With his more sensitive olfactory sense, he had been able to smell what he said was a minute change in her scent.
While it hadn’t been planned, both males were ecstatic over the prospect, and at that point it didn’t matter which one was the sire. Kagome was more cautious, and said that they wouldn’t know for sure for at least a couple more weeks. Several weeks later, just after Kagome had begun to believe it was possible that she might be pregnant, she had gotten her menses, along with the usual excruciating cramps and heavy bleeding.
Since Sesshoumaru had been so positive, Shun had gone online to do some research and then contacted her OB/GYN when he had trouble believing what he read. The doctor confirmed the facts he had and Shun was almost speechless as he thanked the doctor and hung up the phone.
He knew that once a female youkai was impregnated, it was nonexistent to extremely rare for there to be a problem with the pregnancy. Unless you counted bed rest towards the end for those unfortunate enough to be carrying a litter with multiple young, like rabbit youkai were prone to have.
After checking on Kagome and getting her another hot water bottle, he tracked Sesshoumaru down in his office. Informing Shun that he had a doctor’s appointment the following day, Sesshoumaru once again said that he was sure he wasn’t wrong and couldn’t believe that his sense of smell had become so compromised.
“Sesshoumaru, I don’t think there is anything wrong with your nose. However, the next time maybe we should wait for Kagome to tell us that she thinks she’s pregnant.” Shun toyed with the puzzle that was on top of the desk.
Raising an eyebrow at him, Sesshoumaru asked, “Why would that be?”
“I did some research online, then spoke with Kagome’s doctor. She confirmed that the information I have is correct, even though it sounds bizarre.” Shun looked at Sesshoumaru and shook his head. He never would have thought that humans were such fragile creatures, and wondered again about how they had been able to overpopulate the planet. “Scientific research has shown that 60% to 70% of all human pregnancies are lost prior to the womans’ expected next menstrual period. Because it happens so early, many of the losses occur without the woman even having known she was pregnant.”
When Shun stopped speaking, they both sat there staring at each other for a long while before Sesshoumaru picked up the phone to cancel his appointment.
~End Flashback~
Kagome giggled when she noticed that Shippo was squirming around in his chair. “Are you sure that you’re alright, Shippo?”
Shippo suddenly jumped up and dropped his concealing spell, shaking out his two tails. The fur was standing on end, and as they continued to bristle, his jyaki crackled painfully along the lengths.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with them, they’ve been acting like this for the last few hours.” He blushed, then sat down to finish his breakfast.
“Maybe you need to change and go for a run in your true form.” Kagome laughed as his tails continued to twitch and quiver. She thought of the story Sesshoumaru had told her about how agitated Shippo had become right before he grew his second tail, and wondered if he was working on a third one.
“You may be right, Kagome. After I’m done, I’ll go take a run. It’s been quite a while since I’ve had the time to do that.” Shippo finished off his breakfast and took the plate into the kitchen to rinse it off and put it in the dishwasher.
Kagome shifted her chair so she could watch him as he went out onto the patio. With a stretch and a shake, along with a swirl of jyaki, Shippo was in his true form. He wasn’t nearly as large as Sesshoumaru, only about four or six times the size of a normal red fox, but in Kagome’s eyes, magnificent none the less. She had seen him like this several times, but she was still in awe every time she saw one of them transform. After he ran off into the woods of the shiro Kagome turned her eyes to Shun. She had yet to see his true form. When he had a need to change he usually headed towards his ancestral lands in the Himalaya’s where his thick coat wouldn’t cause him to overheat and have a heatstroke.
Catching the questioning look, Shun held up his hands. “Not today, it’s way too hot. Maybe if we get enough snow this winter I’ll transform one day and play with you. How’s that sound, Princess?”
Kagome laughed as she began to clear the plates. “I’ll hold you to it, Shun!”
~*~
Several hours later, Kagome was finished with weeding the garden, and had picked a basket full of lettuce and tomatoes to use for sandwich fixings and to make a salad to go with dinner. A second basket contained some vegetables and herbs for dinner. Seeing a shadow pass over the garden for a second time, Kagome held onto her hat to look up and spy a large black eared kite soaring overhead. Watching it glide lower, she recognized Hayato and waited for him to land in one of the nearby trees and transform into his human appearance. It seemed that quite a few of the youkai had a desire to be in their true form today.
The dai-tengu jumped down to ground and picked his way through the garden towards Kagome. “I thought I would drop in and see if you could use some more help this weekend.”
Kagome laughed as he extended a hand to help her up. Handing him the one of the baskets, they talked quietly as he followed her into the kitchen.
Sesshoumaru nodded to Shun as they watched Kagome and Hayato head into the house to make lunch. Hopefully a long talk with the doctor would help resolve any lingering issues she had with the repercussions from the last few weeks.
~*~
By late afternoon the new roof over the garage and the patch section over the gym was completed. The new brick pavers for the patio were laid and sand was being tamped into the cracks when the first faint stirring was felt.
It started out as a barely discernable movement that quickly accelerated into an undulating shaking motion that had Sesshoumaru racing across the patio. Kagome shot out of the breakfast room door to jump into his outstretched arms. “Sesshoumaru! It’s an earthquake!”
Gathering his youki to form a cloud under his feet, Sesshoumaru rose straight up above the treetops and hovered there as they watched the initial tremor rip through the area. Hayato quickly transformed into his true form and the black eared kite joined them to circle around and survey the damages.
Peering over Sesshoumaru’s shoulder, Kagome studied the now ripped up patio. “Wow, Kashima must have really let his guard slip for Namazu do that much damage.”
Sesshoumaru smirked at her belief in the myth of the giant catfish. “Well, koi, it could have been much worse. It appears the roof survived unscathed.”
After they settled back down to earth and Kagome made sure that no one was hurt, she began to wonder if the youkai had a built in early warning system. Everyone who had been twitchy and seemed uncomfortable in their human form, had settled down and now appeared back to normal. It was something she would have to think about.
~*~
Authors Note:
In Japanese mythology, Namazu (鯰) is a giant catfish who causes earthquakes. Namazu lives in the mud beneath the earth, and is guarded by the god Kashima who restrains the fish with a stone. When Kashima lets his guard fall, Namazu thrashes about, causing violent earthquakes.
~*~