Chapter Text
Part 2
Chapter 1
Everyone gave their hugs, and/or just said their good nights. Each going to their rooms. Miah took Toga and Izayoi, showing them to their very own private section of the manor, instead of where they had slept before.
Night fell with peace going over the entire manor, as everyone began settling in.
A howl was heard an hour or so later, as Miah could be seen running away from the manor to the border of her territory, bounding up the mountain, like it wasn’t even a mountain more like a little hill.
Inuyasha and Kagome stood on their balcony watching her run, “She must be patrolling before going to bed.” Inuyasha hummed in answer. “Come on, Kagome. You should go relax in the spring.” Kagome looked up at Inuyasha with the best puppy eyes she could muster, “Oh! Yes, please!” He watched her go run inside and laughed to himself at her pure delight.
Kagome looked over shoulder, “You comin’ Yash!?” Inuyasha blinked at her, “Uh, is that really, okay?” Kagome turned and blinked at him, “Uh… Well, yeah! We’ve already technically bathed together.” Inuyasha blushed from the tip of his ears to his neck. Kagome walked back to him with a smile and grabbed his hand giggling and pulled him along while he sputtered.
After their relaxing bath in the springs, which was less awkward this time. Inuyasha shook off and flicked his tails, he wasn’t used to the mokomoko and how wet it had gotten, though it wasn’t a lot with so many layers of fur. He’d have to talk to his father and Sesshomaru about how they bathed with the damn thing.
Inuyasha grumbled to himself while Kagome tried to help him dry off. “I’m sorry, Yash! There has to be a better way to bathe with all this… Uhmn, fur.”
Annoyed he huffed, “Keh! I’m gonna have to talk to my ol’ man or Sesshomaru ‘bout it. Even my hair doesn’t hold this much water.” Kagome giggled, “You’re right! There… I think that’ll do it. What do you think?”
Inuyasha stood and moved it, then snarled, “Duck!” Then he shook causing Kagome to let out a squeak, “Eep!” as she hid behind the towel she had. Laughing, she yelped, “YASH!”
Inuyasha puffed out, literally, when he finished, and he plopped down on one of the tatami mats being all grumbly. Kagome shook her head, “Here, Yash, a clean kosode. I’m gonna go find that brush, or something, that’ll help tame that puff of yours. I thought your hair was bad, but this? This is a new level.” Inuyasha left out a heavy sigh, “Tell me ‘bout it!”
After a few moments of hearing her rummage in her backpack he heard her exclaim, “Ah-HA! Found it!” Kagome looked victorious, as she came back to him with her infamous dog brush she got just for him, Kirara, and Shippo, to maintain their hair and fur. “Ugh! That one, really?!” He sighed again, defeated, “Oh well, at least it works! Why the hell not… Let’s try it!” He shifted to get comfortable for the long hall and assumed the position, if you were.
Kagome finally also had a sleeping yukata on too when she came back. She sat down with a determined look in her eyes and began to brush his hair first, which didn’t take long, she braided his hair down his back in a loose braid.
Once she finished cleaning out the brush, her determined look grew as she started tackling his mokomoko, pushing his now braided hair over his right shoulder. It was working rather well, Inuyasha had only yelped twice so far because Kagome had found a knot deep within the undercoat.
A knock on their door had them both pause and look at each other confused. Inuyasha looked toward the door, “Yeah, come in!” The door slowly slid open to reveal his father and mother. “Forgive us, Pup, but we wanted to speak to you-” He blinked a moment at the sight of Inuyasha sitting there with his legs crossed, Kagome sitting behind him with one tail of his mokomoko in her lap and a brush in her hand, both staring at him and Izayoi in confusion. “Um…? What are you doing, Little Flower?” Toga inquired with a brow raised.
Kagome blinked out of her momentary confusion, “Uhmn… Well, trying to tame his mokomoko? We took a bath and it didn’t want to dry! Then, when he shook that last time… Uh, it really poofed out! So, I, um, I have a special brush for his and Shippo’s hair, plus Kirara’s fur and Shippo’s tail. It’s working really well… uh… So far?!”
Toga barked out an echoing laugh. Izayoi walked over to Kagome and looked at the brush she had, she glanced at her son’s mokomoko. Reaching over she touched Inuyasha’s fur. The fur shivered under her touch. Then her eyes shined brightly, ogling over how soft it had become from just a brush.
Izayoi slyly looked over her shoulder, with a growing devilish grin, “Dearest?” She drawled out. Toga sucked in air through his nose, froze stiff, knowing that look, “Y-Yes, my Love?”
Izayoi patted the mat beside Inuyasha. Toga realized what she wanted to do, deflating in defeat knowing better, he sighed with his whole body, “Yes, Dear…” He closed the door and sulked as he drug himself to sit by his pup, with a plop and a grumble, he heard his wife’s happy giggle.
Inuyasha raised a brow to his father with a smirk, Toga only shook his head to answer his pup’s silent question.
They rumbled and growled in Inu-yokai between each other while Kagome showed Izayoi how the brush worked. Kagome finished Inuyasha’s other mokomoko tail, then handed the brush to his mother, “Just don’t pull.”
Inuyasha quickly swiveled his ear towards them, and began nodding his head vigorously in agreement, “Hurts like hell!”
Determined Izayoi nodded, “Alright, I’ll do my best! Toga, Dearest? You ready?” Toga glanced over his shoulder, if he had dog ears, like his youngest, they’d be drooped into his hair, “Not really, if I were to be honest, my Love. But go ahead.” Izayoi smiled, then looked at Kagome, “Why don’t you start him off first, sweetheart. Since you know how to really use this kind of brush.”
Kagome giggled, “Okay. Inuyasha was the same way when I first brought the brush. Shippo was even more skittish, he isn’t a fan of people touching his fox tail, but there were so many knots. It took me forever to brush them out. I swear, I had enough fur when I was done with Shippo to make at least two more tails for him.”
She took the brush back and scooted over behind Toga, “It’s always best to start at the top and work your way down with fur, but hair is always backwards… Well, actually, that’s not always true, it depends on the hair. Uh, Toga? Can you pull your hair over your shoulder, so we don’t accidently get it?” Toga quickly did so, “Is that why my pup’s hair is braided over his shoulder?”
They nodded in unison, Inuyasha chuckled, “Don’ worry, Kagome’s an expert by now. Between me, Shippo, and Kirara there’s been plenty of practice. You’ll be fluffy in no time.”
Toga grumbled and braced for whatever was going to happen, but when he didn’t feel anything, he sat up straight then furrowed his brows confused. Looking behind himself he watched as Kagome gently ran the brush slowly through his fur and showing Izayoi what she meant by layers and undercoat.
He winced with a muted whimper at the first knot she found, “Sorry! It’s in your undercoat. These aren’t Yash’s favorite either, but I don’t blame either of you.” Toga felt her grab onto the knot and hold it, showing Izayoi what they could look like. Then showed her how to gently brush through it.
Toga silently whimpered for a moment but after the initial pull, it was like she wasn’t even doing anything. He looked at his pup in awe. Inuyasha smirked a fanged grin, “See?! Told ya’!” Toga nodded at him, “Indeed! It is actually rather… Relaxing!”
Inuyasha nodded, “So, uh, F-Father?” Toga hummed at him, Inuyasha rubbed the back of his head, “H-How do you and Sesshomaru bathe with this damned thing?”
Toga blinked at his son, momentarily confused by the question, forgetting his youngest wasn’t used to the mokomoko, “Ah! My apologies, Pup. Well, to be honest, I do not know about your brother. I, however, normally just transform and bathe that way. But when I do bathe in human form, I keep it out of the water. It’s too much to deal with when it is that wet. Rain is different, it basically runs off with all the layers. They are removable though.”
Inuyasha sighed but nodded that he understood.
“All done, Dearest!”
Toga blinked a moment, and turned to look at the women behind him, “Already?” They smiled and nodded; Kagome turned her head to a pile of fur between them. Toga and Inuyasha followed her gaze and looked at it.
Toga blushed wide eyed at the pile, “Did all of that come from me?” Kagome giggled, “Uh-huh! That’s why I love this brush. It’s amazing! Inuyasha and Shippo both say they feel lighter afterwards. But that was before Yash got the mokomoko.”
Inuyasha smirked, then nudged his head at his father, “It’s still that way actually. Go ahead, stand up. You’ll get what I mean.” Toga raised his brow at his pup but did as his son requested.
After standing he realized it did feel different, “HUH! Well, that is a pleasant surprise! You’re right, Pup! It does feel different!” He moved his mokomoko tails this way and that, “Much better!”
Inuyasha smirked wider looking at Kagome and his mother, as they giggled to each other.
Toga sat back down, looked between his pup and future daughter-in-law, “So, what would you two like to know about the Inu-yokai mating? I’ll help you with what I can, so as to help you both understand what is expected and needed. Also, it’ll explain what will happen with your mother and myself, as well.”
Inuyasha and Kagome froze, both blushed a deep rose color, and looked at each other than to the floor.
Kagome played with the hem of her obi and bit her bottom lip. Inuyasha glanced at her, shook his head, and pulled her lip out with his thumb, “Bad habit, Wench.” He winked at her, letting her know he was teasing.
She sighed, “Well, I don’t know a single thing about it. Yash did mention that it was basically a yokai wedding, it involved a, um, a bite? Or something? Other than that, it’s mostly… What did you call it, Yash? Instinctual?” Inuyasha nodded his head in agreement.
Toga nodded in agreement, “Mostly, yes! There is a bite involved for us INU-yokai. Technically, the ritual is different for every type of yokai. For us, we bite the pulse point on our mate’s neck/shoulder area. It is easiest to get to and see.” He watched as the couple blushed again. “Now then, as for the rest of the mating process, there isn’t much to tell, most of it is private and very instinct driven.”
Toga smirked at how red the young couple were becoming, he cleared his throat trying to hide his laughter, “There is a blood bond before the mating can happen. This happens before the couple goes off to complete the mating ritual.”
He paused and glanced at his pup before he continued, “A member of the male’s yokai family pricks the couple’s skin with a claw and gives a blessing. While giving the blessing, that member holds the couple’s pricked skin together so their blood can mix together. After the blood bond is created, the blessings received, the bond is instant and very strong! However, once the actual mating happens that bond grows stronger and will continue to grow stronger over their shared lifetime.”
Toga turned his attention to Kagome, “I do need to warn you, little flower, of some important information.”
Kagome blinked at him, “ME?! W-Why?”
Toga looked over at Izayoi with love shimmering in his golden eyes, “Because, Little Flower, you gain something very special with this tradition.” Inuyasha looked at him confused.
Toga chuckled and looked back at the miko, “Kagome, you will gain my pup’s lifespan. Along with possibly some extra new powers. That last bit isn’t guaranteed with any mating couple, but it is possible.” He paused in thought for a moment, holding his chin, “Now, with you being a miko? I am, unfortunately, unsure what will exactly happen, I’m afraid.”
Inuyasha and Kagome slowly nodded to him that they understood.
Izayoi giggled, “We also would like you, baby, to be the one to give us your blessing. Since, you are the only official child of ours. Even though your sister is considered my daughter, she is not my blood. So, would you do us the honor, dear?”
Inuyasha froze in shock, blinking at his mother, “Uh… S-Sure… I guess. If ya’ think I can do it.” Izayoi squealed and hugged her son tightly thanking him. Kagome giggled from beside him. Toga nodded a thank you with a soft smile.
They talked the rest of the evening into the early hours of the dawn, about everything that they wished to be caught up on:
About Inuyasha’s life after Izayoi’s death. How he was able to survive but explaining that he wasn’t really living until he met Kagome.
Kagome reminisced about how she met Inuyasha, there’s travels, battles, and how they grew not only as people, as friends, as they made a makeshift family, but also as lovers. How they struggled, their issues, and telling them about all the heart ache created by Kikyo and the trouble she caused.
Izayoi and Kagome fell asleep soon after, both sleeping laying on or across their chosen’s laps. Toga and Inuyasha looked at each other, both understanding an unspoken rule: ‘never wake your mate unless absolutely needed.’ They both knew how grumpy their women could be without their beauty rest.
Father and son stayed awake, watching their soon-to-be mates and talking about what Inuyasha could expect now that he was a full yokai. What, with practice, he could do with his mokomoko. What powers and abilities he could potentially have, other than healing in his true form.