Somewhere in Time

Acceptance

She felt content just walking around and holding his hand. She answered his questions about the things in the future that he didn't understand—like the cars, the bullet train, and the cellphones and cameras. Sesshomaru didn't have Inuyasha's brash and impulsive nature. He was calm and restrained.

Kagome expected him to lose control because of the humans around, but his patience was surprising. The only signs he gave whenever something bothered him were the tightening of his grasp on her hand and the deep breaths he took to calm his nerves.

They were almost at the end of the fair when three familiar figures called her name.

"Eri-chan, Yuka-chan, Ayumi-chan!" Kagome temporarily let go of Sesshomaru's hand to hug her friends. She stole a nervous glance at the inu-youkai beside her, hoping that the excited voices of the three girls weren't too much for his sensitive ears. The moment their gazes fell on Sesshomaru, their eyes lit up admiringly at his striking features.

"Kagome-chan, who is he?" Eri gasped. "And why are you both wearing kimonos? Are you celebrating a special occasion?"

"A-ano..." The miko stammered. What do I tell them?!

"Wait, is he the delinquent, hot-tempered not-boyfriend who can't get over his ex?" Yuka asked, eyes wide.

"No, this is not Inuyasha!" Kagome replied adamantly, her cheeks blushing fiercely.

"Ah! So the not-boyfriend's name is Inuyasha," Ayumi mused triumphantly.

Kagome wanted to step into a hole and disappear forever. This was so embarrassing! What would Sesshomaru think now? Her heart started pounding in her chest and no doubt the silent inu-youkai beside her could hear it. He reached for her hand soothingly, much to the surprise of the three girls.

"I am Sesshomaru, Lord of the Western Lands. The Inuyasha you speak of is my half-brother."

"Yeah, he is," Kagome jumped in before he could introduce himself as a powerful dog demon. "He just came to Tokyo, so I'm showing him around."

"Lord of the Western Lands?" Eri echoed, her thin eyebrows raised skeptically.

"Well, Sesshomaru-sama comes from a wealthy family. He has lands and businesses in Japan and abroad. His family is really traditional that's why we're wearing these." She gestured to her green kimono and his red and white ones. She was hoping they'd ignore his pointed ears, slanted golden eyes, unusually long silver hair, and facial marks, aside from the spiked pauldron on his left shoulder. Thankfully, her friends didn't ask any more questions regarding their appearance.

"Are you dating then?" Ayumi asked, her eyes twinkling.

"Ayumi-chan, I don't think she needs to answer that." Eri giggled and she pointed to the entwined hands of Kagome and Sesshomaru. "Just wait until Hojo-kun finds out she's dating someone else."

"Who is this Hojo?" Sesshomaru asked coldly, causing Kagome and her friends to look at him with a shiver down their spines.

"A-ano... he's a friend, Sesshomaru-sama," Kagome answered. She was slightly surprised by the daiyoukai's intensity when Hojo was mentioned.

"He's been chasing Kagome for years now actually," Yuka added. "He wants her to be his girlfriend."

"Girlfriend?" Sesshomaru frowned at the word.

Kagome blushed. "H-he wants us to be, um, lovers."

A quiet hnn was heard from the daiyoukai, but he didn't say anything else. Worried that his patience had run out, Kagome deliberately leaned against his arm and tightened her hold on his hand. She smiled apologetically at her friends. "Well, it was really nice seeing you, guys, but we really need to get going. We still have a lot of places to visit before sunset."