Brother's Bride (To Be)
By: Tia-chan
Part One: The Third, First, and Second Impressions
It was disgusting, it made him sick to his stomach—it had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that he was jealous. The couple across from him was overly affectionate, and that was all it was.
"Smile, you two!" his aunt cooed, and his brother and wife-to-be cuddled in close and smiled gaily at the camera. His girlfriend curled her arm around his and smiled up at him, sky-blue eyes alight. He resisted the urge to shake her off, and didn't even spare her a glance, just stared darkly at the couple; he didn't enjoy too much public affection was all, it was nothing more that made his stomach recoil. A finger tapped his bare arm, he looked down and Lizzie was frowning.
"Were you even listening to me, Sesshoumaru?" she asked, her bottom lip slowly beginning its outward push. He wondered why he started dating her in the first place—oh yes, Rin demanded a mother. He nodded slightly, trying his best not to let his mind slip away from her again. "So? What do you think?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at him.
"I think that you are absolutely right." He replied, and her frown switched right back to that dazzling smile that had ensnared him in the first place. Good move.
"Really, darling? Well, I suppose no one would disagree that they are the perfect couple."—She sighed dramatically here—"Though I'm sure many, many girls are horribly depressed that Inu-Yasha is off the market for good. Kagome sure is a lucky girl…" she ogled his brother a moment longer, before backtracking—one more reason to resent his pathetic excuse for a younger brother. "You are, of course, the apple of my eye, sweetheart."
Someone clinked silverware against a wine glass, successfully silencing Lizzie. It was their Uncle Totousai, Sesshoumaru sighed mentally.
"I'd just like to say,"—Inu-Yasha and Kagome were riveted, smiles present on both their faces—"that this is, indeed, a perfect match. When they first began dating, I was wary—our playboy Inu-Yasha dating this poor, innocent little fairy?" Kagome blushed becomingly and Inu-Yasha grinned, enlacing their fingers. "But now I see that this gamble had definitely paid off, and I am happy to bring this young lady into our family." As he settled back into his chair, everyone clapped, and he saw his stepmother and father smile covertly at each other, probably very glad that everything was going according to plan.
"So, Sesshoumaru, when are you and Lizzie going to name the day?" Izayoi asked softly, timid around him, as usual. As everyone turned to look at him, he stiffened in his chair. Kagome's gray eyes held him curiously spellbound, as she observed him affectionately. His mind raced, but not to the question asked. She has no right to look at me like that, she is not part of this family—
"We're certainly not even close to thinking about such things," he answered icily, glaring especially in Kagome's direction. She tilted her chin down and looked very modest—a look he didn't trust in anyone. His answer caused a ripple of laughter among his relatives. His father boomed raucously.
"Sesshoumaru, you will never settle down!" he remarked, wiping a tear of ire from the corner of his eye.
"Not if it requires such untactful gatherings." He replied, which had Izayoi sighing, drooping like a wilted flower—after all, she had planned this whole get together—and Inutashio turning a mild shade of red. His father had a little respect from Sesshoumaru, however, as he quickly regained his stature.
"You certainly are quick to judge, son." He replied, sending the eldest son a look that was well known to people close to him. A look that covertly said: "How dare you upset your mother like that?"
Sesshoumaru was used to it.
He stood up and pushed out his chair, leaving his silent family to gape, glare, and all other manner of facial expressions, at him. He acknowledged the couple of the hour with the briefest of nods, and strode out, leaving his girlfriend to scramble after him.
"Honey! Honey!" she called out, trying to pull her flowery spring jacket on and run with stilettos. He turned on her just as quickly as he had with his family, with a calm and icy demeanor.
"Mail the spare key to my condo back, Elizabeth, I will take any other tries to call, email, or otherwise any effort to contact Rin or myself at all as a threat, and I will take out a restraining order on you in an instant. Kindly extract any of your possessions from my home by way of my brother—you must be in contact with him, since you seem to be so very fond of him—and after such tiresome errands are complete, I don't want to even hear your name again." Turning from his now ex-girlfriend, he left shocked witnesses of the high-class restaurant to whisper to themselves and his family feeling possibly annoyed, to go back to his condo.
He pushed through the swiveling doors, and as soon as the warm, moist air hit him he felt a burden fall off his shoulders, away from his relations, soon-to-be relations, and ex leech he felt airy. Flagging down the limo, which was used to escort "the couple" here, he slid in and told the man his address.
After that he discouraged all efforts of conversation and settled back against the plush seats, pouring himself a glass of vodka, and let his thoughts wash over him. Today had been only the third time he'd seen Kagome, and the first time he'd seen her had been in the early stages of Inu-Yasha's courting. Before that meeting, he'd closeted himself up with his new travel book, writing of all the places he'd visited, letting Rin's nanny take care of all her needs.
Soon enough, though, even Ms. Yoshima could not keep the fiery 12-year-old from barging in on her foster father, demanding that he get out of the house to go and meet a lady. He smirked slightly at the memory, detecting the irony within his own thoughts—he came out of hiding only to be bombarded with Kagome from every side (good reviews from all). He met a lady, all right, just one that was far out of his reach…
"Sesshoumaru! Good to see you've come out of hiding, brother." Inu-Yasha smirked at him, descending from the upstairs of his parents' house.
"Yes, I'm sure it even equals my disdain to be seeing you." He replied frostily. "Where is the old man?" his brother jerked a thumb towards the kitchen and came down the remainder of the stairs.
"I'll go get him." He replied, strolling casually through the door to the kitchen. Moments later, a vision appeared at the top of the stairs—Kagome, as he was soon to find out—with sleek black hair and a shade of eyes he could see from the foyer. She was wearing—he remembered distinctly—a yellow sundress that, as the light hit it, outlined all her curves completely, and her skin was the palest of olive, and only a few specks of jewelry glinted on her wrist, ankle, and neck; and as her hand rested on her banister, and her eyes lit up from inside, he fell completely and utterly in love.
She squealed—unladylike, but charming—and rushed down the stairs and into his arms. She smelt like citrus and roses, if he recalled correctly, and her slim arms just fit perfectly around his torso. She pulled back after a moment, leaving her hands on his sides and appraised him. When she grinned up at him, he noticed she had impeccably white teeth. "You must be Sesshoumaru! You look so much like my Inu-Yasha, and I've heard so much about you!" his hopes died within his breast.
"I take it you're dating him," he said, a hint of despair in his voice. She cocked her head to the side, and she looked even more beautiful.
"Yes, for a month now. He tells me you've been writing a travel book." She seemed naïve, sweet, and curious. He disentangled her from him, and she looked a bit hurt, but quickly covered it up as Inu-Yasha strode into the room with their father. She smiled up at Inu-Yasha and he bent down and kissed her. By the time he pulled away, she was a little flustered. Sesshoumaru despaired that his cheating, undeserving half-brother had snatched such a fine specimen up.
"So, Sesshoumaru, you sought me out?" Inutashio gave his eldest son a broad smile, his arms covered in flour and chocolate specks all over him.
"Are you…baking?" he questioned, arching a perfectly shaped eyebrow.
"Why yes, I am." His father replied, "Why don't you join me?" at this he guffawed, obviously finding the image of Sesshoumaru baking hilarious. He, politely, declined, sighing at his father's incompetence.
"I've actually come to discuss business." Sesshoumaru said, ignoring his father's last, hiccupping utterances. Inutashio straightened immediately, and the eldest son remembered why he had even the slightest (albeit grudging) respect for his father. His father could pull a poker face so quickly that you had to respect the man's business conduct, if not the "family man".
"Alright. To the living room, I'll join you when I'm clean." Their father disappeared into the kitchen, and Kagome stopped Sesshoumaru with a hand on his bicep. He looked back into her earnest face.
"Sesshoumaru…I'm sorry if I'm being a little too up front, but…"—she bit her lip and looked to Inu-Yasha for assurance, who simply raised his eyebrows—"I'd like to get to know you better. After all, I am going to be your sister-in-law." With those last words, Sesshoumaru barely kept his grasp on his coolness.
"I thought you said you've only been dating a month." He replied monotonously.
"What can I say, when you know, you know." Inu-Yasha suddenly spoke up, wrapping his arms around his wife-to-be. He practically engulfed her tiny frame with his muscled arms. They looked so very wrong for each other. Her hand dropped from his arm with this gesture, and she giggled gently, and Inu-Yasha growled against her neck, and tightened his grasp slightly. When she looked back up at him, her eyes were shimmering with happiness.
"So, what do you say?" she asked, smiling brightly—he felt her siren's call, as if he was being pulled to her, and at that moment he knew he couldn't trust himself alone with her.
"I'm very busy right now…" he replied, and saw her lose a bit of that sparkle. He knew he couldn't leave her like that, and he hated it. "Maybe later, though." She grinned largely, and he felt warmth spread through him, quick as wildfire. "Inu-Yasha, give her my number, so she can call." He muttered, and quickly extricated himself from the room.
"Sir…sir, we're here." He shook himself from his musings and nodded to the driver, leaving the limousine. As soon as he walked in the door, a young ball of energy flung her self on him.
"Daddy! Daddy! You're home! You're home!" she squealed, latched onto his leg. She was a bit of a runt for her age, and so he was able to turn and close the door with her still hanging off his leg.
"Since when did you become repetitive?" he questioned, prying her off his leg and gathering her into his arms. She smiled largely at him, revealing that one of her front teeth had been lost. Ignoring his question, the hyperactive girl launched into a whole other discussion, as to how she had lost her tooth. He couldn't keep a heart-felt smile from emerging for his adoptive daughter.
Her plump old maid, looking frazzled and distraught, emerged from the master bedroom, a basket in her grip. Sesshoumaru leaned down and kissed the short woman on the forehead. This was the only person, other than Rin, that he had ever shown any real affection towards. Her name was Sara Yoshima (one of the few Japanese people he knew here in New York), and she was 67 years old, widowed, and had a real knack for housecleaning, and though Rin wore her out, she loved the child dearly, as one of her own. Rin considered her a grandma of sorts.
"Hello Sara," he greeted, civil enough. She huffed, straightening out her apron with one hand.
"Don't try to charm me now, Sesshoumaru, this little demon has caused me trouble enough." She bustled towards the door, Sesshoumaru looking on with amusement. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to the laundry room to do your laundry, then I'm going home." She gave the child peering out at her, trying to hide a smile, and Sesshoumaru, a look that said, "I dare you to challenge me" and left the room.
Sesshoumaru shook his head and placed his daughter back onto the ground, and immediately she started, tirelessly, telling her father about her day. As she did this, he herded her into her bedroom and into her Toy Story pajama's, through the whining of having to brush her teeth and hair, and finally, into bed. There her energy seemed to fizzle out, and she snuggled into the covers. "Daddy, may I have a bedtime story? Pleeease?"
"All right…which one?" he asked, and she tapped her bottom lip in thought—she looked deep in concentration, and then she brightened.
"The one about the princess and the frog." She replied, giggling sweetly. He chuckled, already having arisen from the bed and plucked the story from the shelf (she always requested The Frog Prince). Rin, already 12 years of age, was still very young at heart, and Sesshoumaru coddled her—he was giving her the childhood she'd been robbed of, having been orphaned at 3. Her father had died of cancer, and her mother soon after—she'd always said "Died of heartache"—and had been from home to home ever since, finally settling with him. He found no reason not to let her have her fun, as she was serious in school, and had very high marks. He fancied she'd be a writer, like him, though with her whimsical sense of life, and romantic spirit, he knew she'd write romances.
Soon after he'd begun to read, she fell asleep, dark brown hair splayed all over her crisp white pillow. He tucked the bed sheets around her and turned off her bedside lamp, leaving the streetlights to illuminate the room from her window. Returning the book to the shelf, he left, leaving her door open a crack (so he could hear her if she had one of her frequent, which were beginning to become infrequent, nightmares).
He sighed softly and padded to his bedroom, pulling the chair away from his computer and settling down to write. After a few paragraphs on his adventure in Venice, Italy, his cell phone vibrated on the desk. Pulling it from its protective leather sheath, he observed the name. "Inu-Yasha and Kagome" was displayed on the frontal screen of his expensive phone (which Rin had picked out a cartoon-like cover for). He flipped it open and answered,
"Hello?"
"Sesshoumaru?" the achingly familiar female voice echoed through the receiver. He pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Yes." He replied shortly, hoping to discourage conversation. Kagome was a persistent woman, and was not fazed by the clipped answer.
"Hi there! I'm just hanging around Café Deloris, and I thought, 'What a perfect opportunity to get together with you'. So, what do you say, join me for a cappuccino?" he hesitated, and then thought to himself what more harm could be done.
"Alright. I'll be there in fifteen minutes." He replied, and he could envision the smile she would've given him.
"Thanks, Sesshoumaru…this means a lot to me." He murmured goodbye and then closed his phone, looking around his bedroom. He got dressed in a casual long-sleeved, black top and gray slacks, grabbing his coat from the kitchen chair along with his car keys. He poked his head into the living room, where Rin sat in the afternoon sunlight, drawing. She looked up as he walked in.
"Hey, can you tell Sara that I'm going out for a bit?" his daughter nodded, looking at him curiously.
"Where are you going?" for some reason, he couldn't fathom telling her the truth, and simply shrugged.
"I'm going to meet up with your Uncle Inu-Yasha and,"—to discourage her, he said—"talk about boring business." She brightened considerable, anyway, as she always did at the mention of her favorite relative's name, hopping up and away from her colorful drawing, dropping her crayons on the plushy rug.
"Oh, Daddy, can I please come? Please, please, please? Can I?" she pleaded, tugging on his sleeve. As usual, he found it undeniably hard to resist his daughter's pleas. He tried to find a way to say no to her, as she suddenly went silent and stared up at him with large, doleful brown eyes, which were quickly tearing up.
"Well…" he began, hesitating. "Honey, Inu-Yasha might not be there. His…friend called me and said to meet her for coffee." Rin got a wicked gleam in her eye, and smiled up at Sesshoumaru.
"That's okay! I'll come anyway, just in case he does show up." She ran to the front closet, pulling on her shoes and light jacket. He sighed, and followed her lead, doing the same himself. After he had hurried her through her fuss over what hat to wear, and got her buckled into the back seat, with thorough complaints about wanting to sit up front, they were already five minutes late.
When they finally arrived at the café, they were ten minutes late, and Sesshoumaru craned his neck to spot Kagome, who was curled up with a book and a steaming cup of coffee in a comfortable window seat. She looked up, as if sensing him there, and waved him over. He took Rin's hand and met no resistance as he took her over to Kagome.
"Well, hello there!" she said brightly, not even commenting on his lateness. "Who might you be?" she asked Rin. The girl played off her shy-girl act, scuffing the toe of her shiny black shoe on the ground.
"I'm Rin," she replied, and tentatively took Kagome's hand for a handshake. Sesshoumaru shooed her onto the couch-like seat, and took off his jacket. Then Kagome looked at him, admiration and a hint of jealousy in those stunning eyes.
"Daddy, can I go get some hot chocolate?" Rin asked politely, holding fast to her little plaid beret. Sesshoumaru nodded, scrounging through his pockets for money. He held out a ten-dollar bill and told her to get him a small coffee, too, and she hurried off into the line. Kagome sighed softly,
"You're so lucky, I can't wait to have kids." She hummed, her voice sliding over him like a silk cloth. He chuckled.
"You haven't seen her real side yet," he replied jokingly, and he couldn't believe how he was acting towards her. He blamed it on the fact that Rin was a subject that made him feel fatherly and proud. "She can be a real pain sometimes."—Then he smiled affectionately in her direction—"Of course, you're right to want a kid, though. They give you the best moments in your life, no matter how annoying they are." She looked riveted on him.
"I truly admire you," she said earnestly, and he was surprised. She laughed. "I know that's an odd thing to say, seeming as I just met you, but, really…to adopt a child and treat them like…your family, that's a really good, honest thing." He supposed Inu-Yasha had told her the whole adoption process and such.
"I suppose." He replied. "Though I didn't even try. She just wormed her way in there and was, just…accepted. Completely. My honesty or goodness had nothing to do with it." He suddenly felt a little bit shy, a bit modest, even. No one had ever complimented him on how he acted with Rin. Speaking of her, she ran up to the table and saved him, depositing his change and coffee on the table, and crawled over him to her side, by the window. Showing complete childlike innocence, she asked confidentially,
"Are you and my daddy in love?" Turning a brief shade of red, the two adults looked at each other. Kagome turned an even deeper shade and fiddled with a lock of her hair.
"Now, Rin, what makes you think that?" she asked nervously, trying an awkward smile. The little girl calmly sipped her hot chocolate, murmuring sagely,
"You look like you're in love."
After everything had been sorted out, Kagome explaining that, no, they were not in love, as she was going out with Uncle Inu-Yasha, and after many questions from a curious young girl, they settled into a comfortable conversation, as Rin scribbled merrily on a napkin, with a pen Kagome had provided her with. About an hour later, they all agreed it was time to go. Rin ran out to Sesshoumaru's car (after he had warned her to stay in plain sight) and left the two adults alone.
"She's charming, really." Kagome said softly, smiling up at him. He yearned to lean down and kiss her, but squelched the urge and nodded instead. "I'm glad we got together today—it was everything I'd hoped." She went up on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek, and for the rest of the day, he'd tried convincing himself it stirred up nothing in him more than brotherly affections.
"Hello?" Sesshoumaru flipped open his cell phone, hoping and praying that it wasn't Kagome, and was Inu-Yasha. His prayers were answered.
"Hey," his half-brother replied comfortably. "Just to let you know, the party went smoothly without you there." Sesshoumaru sighed and Inu-Yasha laughed. "That's not just why I'm calling, though…okay, Sessh, I know we've never been close or anything, but there's no one else I could call." He was slightly amazed; never been close? They'd never done anything remotely brotherly, or been anything. He listened anyway. "I need a huge favor. Miroku's sick, and he can't make it to the wedding…would you be my best man?" he asked gruffly, and Sesshoumaru found himself nodding dumbly to the phone.
"All right." Was all he managed, and Inu-Yasha gave a sigh of baited breath, all uncomforted tone melted from his voice.
"Thanks, bro." He said appreciatively. "I know Kagome will be glad, too." He hung up, and Sesshoumaru did, too.
Yet he had no idea what on earth he was going to do, when he was in love with the groom's bride.
A/N: The second installment shall arrive soon, so fear naught! I am working on it already.