Moroha found the dance between Setsuna and Hisui hilarious. Never one for romance, she enjoyed the awkwardness that surrounded the pair. The boy was much more in love in the half-demon than she was him. Inevitable heartbreak, Moroha predicted. She also relished in the red that overcame his face whenever she pointed it out. In front of her father, his father – anyone, really! And he’d lash out with his weapon of choice – just too slow to make a contact; she was too swift.
So, karma had to repay the favor.
One errand. That’s all. A trip from one village to the other for mere supplies. Of course, her mother insisted she wear something less conspicuous. A frivolous kimono borrowed from Sango. And no teeth. Be polite – don’t say anything smart. That part was uttered by her hypocritical father – though his intentions meant well, too concerned his daughter would be harmed by people propelled by prejudice. Not that she couldn’t hold her own…
Which is why she didn’t mind picking a fight with a demon that she came across attacking a procession of men. They were no match for the gigantic beast but she came prepared with her sword, hidden well. Not even her father spied the piece as she slipped off. Nor would he have said something because better safe than sorry. Her mother would have opted for a bow. Thankfully, she gathered that, too, having tucked it away out of her father’s sight and grabbed it as she rounded the hut.
A rebel through and through. Seventeen going onto forever. She was invincible.
Her hair was done in a much more mature fashion – much to her chagrin as she had to set aside precious seconds to tie it back. Another man had fallen from his horse; another slain. She raised her bow and shot it straight – piercing armor made of bone. The beast howled and glared down at the surprisingly small woman.
“You!” It thrashed, attempting to grab her. Her reflexes were keener than its own, evading capture with a simple jump back. She wielded her preferred weapon, a sword of strength and stealth that matched her own.
It screamed as its wrist was sliced clean up. Screw her kimono – she doubted it was the first time the fabric had been spoiled with blood. Sango would know how to clean it out. She made another slice, aiming at its neck. Blood was rampant in the air but she did her best to ignore the stench.
For a demon so large, it offered little fight. She was disappointed to see it cut down so fast. She wanted something more. With a heavy sigh, she yielded her sword and secured her bow back in place.
“Not even a bounty,” she lamented as she walked pass. A corpse or two lay in her wake; nothing could be done for them. Her father would’ve pitied them but moved on. The living would attend to the carnage. She had another mission. Her mother would have a fit if she did not come by sundown with the desired herbs.
“Miss! Miss!”
She paused mid-step, glancing back with curiosity. A man of noble tier scrambled her way, traumatized by the slaughter yet having not a scratch on his body. He must’ve been important to be protected.
“Yeah?”
“Miss! I must know your name to express my deepest gratitude!”
“Uh…” she mustered. If she said her name, it could come back to bite her. Yet, what harm could it do?
“Moroha,” she decided to oblige him.
“Lady Moroha? I am indebted to you. You have demonstrated great skill and bravery in face of true terror. As a reward for saving my life from certain death, I’d be honored if you would accept my proposal of marriage.”
“What…?” she stammered.
“I am Nobleman Akio Inoue, the youngest child and only son of Chieftain-”
“Sorry, but no,” she rudely interrupted. So much for avoiding harm. She just insulted some high-and-might-nobleman. Would her father care? No. Would he hate the idea of having to deal with the aftermath of a man’s wounded pride? Of course. But he’d rather deal with that than send his daughter off to a stranger. “My father would not accept,” she attempted to ease the brunt of the blow.
“Whom is your father?” he inquired.
“Uh…”
Myoga had called him a Lord. And her mother a Lady. But she had always known them to be called nothing more than a half-demon and a priestess. Informally, Inuyasha and Kagome. She always called them Mom and Dad. Yet, her heritage may claim more rank above the nobleman’s if she took into consideration the demon hierarchy. She wouldn’t explain such to him since she scarcely understood it herself.
“None of your concern,” she eased. “Your expression of gratitude will suffice. Carry on,” she dismissed hastily. Her steps fastened and she swiftly escaped out of ear shot, though she heard him call her out plenty in her retreat.
She nearly forgot the experience altogether, grumbling to her father about the scolding she received from her mother upon returning home later than usual and bearing blood all over the borrowed clothes. He laughed, patted her hair, granted her his usual line of “could be worse” before walking off into the village where she was certain he sought to converse with Miroku over their latest job.
Or tease Hisui over his crush on Setsuna. Inuyasha found it humorous a slayer was enamored with Sesshomaru’s offspring. ‘Kid is suicidal,’ her father would tease. Setsuna wasn’t as warm to Inuyasha as she was to Moroha – distrusting of the adult half-demon more so for his connection with her estranged father than anything else.
Talks of proposals were long forgotten until one unexpected visit from a nearby nobleman had Moroha hiding behind Kaede’s hut. Her mother was alarmed.
“I’ll be off!” she squeaked but her mother kept her cornered.
“Why are you so scared of being seen?” her mother questioned with crossed arms. “Shy is not a word I’d describe you as.”
“Uh…”
“Spit it out, Moroha!”
“I SAVED HIM FROM A DEMON AND HE PROPOSED TO ME AND I SAID NO!” Moroha breathed all at once. She was wide eyed and panicked, much like her mother who exhibited the same nervous expression.
“What?!”
“I DIDN’T TELL DAD BECAUSE DAD WOULD – WELL, YOU KNOW HIM! SO, I DIDN’T SAY ANYTHING AND I THOUGHT IT WOULDN’T BE A PROBLEM BECAUSE I’D NEVER SEE HIM AGAIN BUT THAT’S NOT THE CASE!”
“Moroha, one trip by yourself and we’ve slighted a noble family! I don’t know if your father would be proud of you or furious!”
“Just hide me! I was never here!!”
“Uh, oh,” Kagome winced.
“What?” Moroha whispered.
“He’s caught the village’s attention.”
“No, no, no, no,” Moroha pleaded helplessly. She hid into her mother’s shoulder.
“I seek a fair maiden by the name of Moroha!” the man announced. “I was told she resides here!”
The demon’s ears twitched.
“Did he just…?” Setsuna asked, eyeing the stranger whose caravan arrived in their measly village.
“Fair? Is he talking about our Moroha?” Hisui chuckled. That earned a small grin from Setsuna.
“She must have hit him too hard on the head,” she replied. He laughed at her jab.
“She is cute… when she wants to be,” Shippo jabbed. “She’s a bit of a tomboy.” He spied an emerging figure from the nearby tree stepping onto the road. “Uh-oh…”
“What about her?” Inuyasha stepped forward. His voice was harsh and cautious.
“I desire to seek out her father,” he replied sternly. “I have business with him that requires immediate attention.”
“How so…” Inuyasha insisted, arms crossed and eyes set in a beady glare.
“It does not concern you, half-demon! Step aside!” the man cast with a strong arm to the left.
“It sure as hell does when it’s my daughter you’re talking about,” Inuyasha spat. His hand wavered over the sheath of his trusted sword.
“We don’t know a Moroha! He is confused!” Kagome intervened with lightning speed. She bowed incessantly. Inuyasha looked down with utter confusion.
“Priestess, you know this half-demon?”
Before Inuyasha could say anything, Kagome snuck a small glare his way. “Don’t say anything!” she hissed.
“Okay…” he grumbled.
“We know a Moroha!” Hisui spoke out. He was the recipient of icy glares from both parents and child alike. Setsuna was unmoved.
“What business do you have with her?” her cousin pitched.
“I desire to speak with her father at once!”
“He’s right here – what do you have to say? Get on with it,” Inuyasha spat, baring his teeth.
“Inuyasha…” Kagome whispered, tugging him back by his arm to no avail.
“In no way could a half-demon like you reproduce such a fine creature as she,” the nobleman sneered.
“Thanks for the compliment but get on with it before I part you head from your body, idiot,” Inuyasha snarled.
Kagome paled. Moroha shrunk in the shadows.
“Perhaps I can intermediate,” Miroku intervened. He stepped between the two. “I can attest my friend, though foul tempered, is indeed the father of the woman you inquire about.”
“I agree with Inuyasha – what business do you have with her?” Sango joined. Her hand was purposely placed on her weapon, ready to draw.
“She is my betrothed!”
“No, I’m not!” Moroha shrieked as she emerged from her hiding place. “I said no!”
“You said your father would not approve,” Akio mused.
“I said no and that he wouldn’t approve!” she raised her voice as an angry red overcame her features.
“Which I don’t!” Inuyasha joined.
“Get that through your thick skull! Move on!!” Moroha seconded.
“You are… partially demon,” Akio nodded. “That explains your strength and bravery. Nonetheless, I am indebted to you, and your heritage does not dissuade me from fulfilling my promise.”
“The hell you will! Hands off my daughter, you freak,” Inuyasha snarled, drawing his sword.
Setsuna chuckled. Hisui sputtered, doing his best to hide his amusement after a reprimanding look from his uncle, followed by his own parents who were worried by Inuyasha retaliating.
“This is one big misunderstanding,” Kagome waved off before retracting her daughter behind her.
“A priestess and a half-demon… such a peculiar union…”
“If you got something to say, pal, say it!”
“Inuyasha! Sit, boy!”
A thunderous thud followed, with her father planted on the road.
“Ow!!”
Moroha stiffened, never so happy in her life to be free of such damning beads.
“Sorry, Dad!” She squeaked.
“Why do you approve of such a match? Surely, I’d elevate her station, and bestow our children with a better quality of life,” he made the mistake of justifying. “They would exhibit a lesser degree of demonic energy as she or yourself. We could disguise that properly.”
“CHILDREN?!” Both daughter-and-father cried incredulously.
Kagome sputtered. “Excuse me, she’s seventeen!”
“He’s surely digging his own grave,” Sango sighed.
“Perhaps it’s best we let her father do the honors,” Miroku agreed. He wasn’t naïve enough to think he’d react any differently where his twins were concerned. They stepped out of the way in tandem.
“This will be a slaughter,” Setsuna theorized.
“I am not a cow to be bred!” Moroha squawked. “I’ll kill you myself!”
“No one is killing anyone!” Kagome disagreed. She breathed nervously. “I’m sorry you came all this way… but marriage is not in the future for you two,” she attempted to mediate.
“Is she already spoken for?”
“No! She’s seventeen and under my care!” Inuyasha growled with a raised fist.
“Oh, so you already prepared a match with someone of your likeness,” Akio accused with narrowed us. “I disagree – it’d be a disservice for your daughter.”
“That’s not your call to make and she isn’t marrying anyone anytime soon! Not if I have any say in it!”
“Yeah! Marriage ain’t for me, buddy!” Moroha copied.
“I wouldn’t turn it down so soon if I were you,” Hisui humored. “This could be your one and only chance.”
Moroha steered towards him with raging eyes.
“No one asked you, Hisui!”
“Butt out, you! Miroku! Manage your son!”
“Now is not the time, son,” Miroku meekly said as he approached his offspring.
“I’m inclined to agree,” Setsuna joined.
“With me…?” Hisui prompted, hopeful she was aligning herself with him.
“This one or perhaps, if he’s still enamored, the wolf boy, too,” Setsuna added.
“Enough!” Inuyasha bellowed. He nearly drew out his sword had it not been for Kagome who stepped in front of him, guarding him.
“Would you decline nobility and comfortability?” Akio asked Moroha.
“I do! I’m staying right here! Time to go! Good-bye! See you never!”
“Manners,” Kagome warned.
“Screw manners,” Inuyasha cursed.
“So be it,” Akio dejected. He pulled the reigns of the steed, prompting the horse forward. He passed by the family of three as he did.
“No offense has been taken, I assure you,” he calmly said as his eyes set upon Moroha. “I bid you good fortune, Lady Moroha, and you, too… half-demon, priestess…”
Inuyasha was tense, hands fisted, alongside his daughter who bore teeth as he passed. A real feral child – however cute she may be in her mother’s eyes. Kagome waved awkwardly.
“You missed your chance to marry rich,” Hisui teased as he joined the threesome alongside his parents.
“You handled yourself pretty well given the circumstances,” Miroku chuckled.
“Moroha…” Inuyasha warned. She felt his eyes burn into her skull. She trembled.
“Mom can explain!!” She squealed, running away.
“Not a chance! Get back here!” Inuyasha gave chase.
“I wonder what your dad would do if someone tried to ask for your hand,” Hisui joked to Setsuna.
“Kill him, no doubt,” Setsuna answered promptly.
The color on his face drained.
“Maybe we should pick our battles,” Sango warned – enjoying the terror on her boy’s face as she, too, foresaw his crush teetering on delusional.
I started writing a one-shot (or theoretically just a one shot) to accompany my completed Inuyasha fanfic Miracle. Inspired by a similar moment with my own kiddo, it starts out cotton candy sweet and just as fluffy.
Tiny snippet:
The soft fluff of baby hair against her nose woke her from a deep sleep. Probably the first deep sleep she'd had in weeks, if not months. Ugh. The newborn phase is so rough. Kagome yawned, brushing Ryo's downy curls from her face. His little grey ears twitched in response, but a snort was the only indication he was disturbed by her movement.
"Mama?"
"Hm? What is it, baby?" Kagome whispered. Izayoi, barely four, knelt on the edge of the bed, waiting for her mother to acknowledge her. The look in her eyes made it pretty obvious what she wanted, but Kagome was encouraging her quiet toddler to use her words.
"Can I snuggle too?"
"Of course, baby girl." She rolled onto her back, still cradling her four month old in her right arm, opening her left arm for her daughter to curl into her side. "Is Otou with the big boys?" Izayoi grunted an affirmative just as the popping sound of her thumb entering her mouth made Kagome wince. "Iz… no thumb."
It only gets sappier from there... 😂
And a bit for the big boys:
"This is it?" Toga asked skeptically. "Kinda looks like a dump." Kagome and Inuyasha shared a look of amusement.
"Be respectful, whelp, or he'll get you with that hammer of his I've been telling you about." The elder inuhanyou chided him. Kagome hid a smile as she shifted Ryo in his sling.
Hitoshi stepped up beside her, Izayoi on his back, the pair's bright eyes taking in the cave mouth at the top of the hill. Ryo gave a squeaky cough.
"Mama, I don't think the fumes are good for you or Ryo."
"Boy's right, Koi. Better you and the little ones stay down further." Kagome scowled at being left out of this important milestone for their eldest, but agreed that the volcanic gases in the air would do neither her nor their younger two any good. Oh brother. I can’t even think about all the stuff I was exposed to before all of this, she thought. Poison gas, volcanoes, miasma, smoke… it was a miracle she hadn’t developed some kind of lung disease. At least now, the combination of her husband’s youki through their bond and her own reiki meant that she healed faster and was not as susceptible to common human ailments. The little ones were still developing their youki and would need to be protected like (very sturdy) human children for a while yet.
“Listen to your Otou, understand? Totosai is forgetful and fickle on the best days.”
“Keh. I’ll keep an eye on them, don’t worry,” Inuyasha tried to soothe her with a confident smirk and a wink. Kagome frowned, but allowed him to drop a quick kiss on her head.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: 半妖の夜叉姫 | Hanyou no Yashahime | Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon (Anime), InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Relationships: Higurashi Kagome/InuYasha, InuYasha (InuYasha) & Moroha (Hanyou no Yashahime), Higurashi Kagome & Moroha (Hanyou no Yashahime), Ayame/Kouga (InuYasha)
Characters: Original Male Character(s), Moroha (Hanyou no Yashahime), InuYasha (InuYasha), Higurashi Kagome, Koga
Additional Tags: Humor, Drabble, prompt, Headcanon, awkward courting, Family, inufam, inukag - Freeform
Summary:
Credit to AMBORGHINIIRL (tumblr) for the idea that Koga and Inuyasha's old rivalry is revived via their offspring: aka Moroha is the recipient of Koga's son's advances.
Backstory included: Given Moroha was a very rowdy child that exhausted the village kids - slayers included - Kagome's plan to introduce her to other pups because they could keep up backfires majorly. Enter Koga and his kin. And years later, puppy play turns to puppy love.
