Author's Note: So apparently this has been sitting in a folder for a while… I think I'd meant to post it back in February for Lunar New Year, but…well, life. (Iwasprobablylazythisismeletsnotkidourselvesnow)

Year of the Dog
by Tsuki no Tennyo

It might have been a bad idea to invite Sesshoumaru's family and Kouga to dinner, Kagome decided after Inuyasha had brandished her whisk.

"It's my own fault," she muttered to herself, carrying a tray of dirty dishes to the kitchen as behind her Kouga deflected one of Inuyasha's attacks before flinging an edamame at the half-demon's eyes. His instant curse was drowned by the sound of the faucet turning on as Kagome started to rinse off dirty food, her own self-admonishments not ending any time soon. "My own dumbass mistake."

"That is a particularly crass description of your fault," Sesshoumaru remarked while snaking an arm around her waist from behind.

"Inuyasha is fighting Kouga with a whisk," Kagome said sullenly, "Kouga is flinging edamame at him. And your mother…is enjoying that bottle of sake she brought for herself."

"Your point being…?"

"I'd just wanted one nice family dinner!"

"When did the wolf become part of my family?"

"Friends, family, whatever!" she sniffed, "I'd just wanted one nice dinner with everyone. If this is the kind of future family dinners we can expect when—"

Her words stopped abruptly, too blatant to escape Sesshoumaru's notice.

"Kagome?"

Her face brightened as she gave a rice bowl far too much focus than necessary. She nearly dropped the bowl when Sesshoumaru suddenly turned her around, forcing her to face him.

"Kagome," he said again, "What were you going to say?"

She lowered her gaze. Her hands nervously turned the bowl around, too embarrassed to tell him her thoughts now. At the sound of her name repeated again, she gave a resigned sigh. "I'd just…thought that maybe…" she mumbled a word, too incoherent for even Sesshoumaru's keen ears to catch.

"What?"

"Children!" she shouted suddenly, her face now scarlet red. "I was hoping to have future family dinners with our own children and everyone and—"

"Whoa, Kagome, are you pregnant?" Inuyasha's voice piped in, adding further mortification to the human woman.

"You bastard!" Kouga yelled, shoving Inuyasha aside only momentarily before the half-demon restrained him by his shirt collar. "How dare you get Kagome pregnant!"

"W-wait a minute," Kagome stammered.

"Sesshoumaru, dear," she heard a smooth demoness' voice chimed in cheerfully, "Should I be expecting my first grandchild soon?"

"Kagome!" Kouga interrupted, "You're not really pregnant with that bastard's child, are you?"

"Why do you care?" Inuyasha cut in with a roll of his eyes. "Don't you have a wife and ten pipsqueaks somewhere?"

"Eleven," Kouga answered with a gruff growl, "And that's not the point! Kagome is too good for this jerk!"

"Well," Inuyasha acquiesced with a grin, "For once, I agree with you, you dumb wolf."

"Ah!" Sesshoumaru's mother clapped her hands together with glee, "It's been a while since we've had a little pup in the family." She turned her gaze over to her son, who had been looking at Kagome quietly during the whole commotion, "Sesshoumaru, dear, you've been fairly quiet during all of this excitement."

"Kagome," he said at last, ignoring everyone. "What were you trying to say?"

"I'm not pregnant," she said quietly to mixed reactions, "I'd just wanted a nice dinner."

"Well, my dear," Sesshoumaru's mother walked over, placing a gentle hand on Kagome's shoulder, "I thought it was a pleasant dinner."

"Yeah," Inuyasha agreed, "I always like having dinners with you." At Sesshoumaru's possessive growl, he added with a snort, "As friends. Geez, I get it, she's yours now."

"I admit," Kouga said with a cross of his arms, "It's not too bad to see familiar faces sometimes. Shame the fox missed out on all of this."

"But you were all fighting and…"

"Kagome," Inuyasha interrupted with a grin, "Isn't this just how it's always been with us?"

She recalled distant memories of a time long gone by of meals on hills and around campfires. She didn't know what she had truly expected. Perhaps she had let modern images of friends cloud her judgment, making her forget what had mattered to her in the past was just being around the people she loved.

She smiled, a little sheepish but more grateful for the kind company and words. "Alright, I'd overreacted a bit."

"Hormones maybe?" Inuyasha joked.

Her face turned scarlet again. "Sit, boy," she said evenly, watching as the half-demon was pulled instantly to her kitchen floor before releasing a long string of curses.

"See, just like the good old days," Kouga said, beaming.

.

"What a night," Kagome sighed, crawling into bed to settle comfortably into her pillow.

"Kagome," Sesshoumaru spoke, walking around to his side of the bed. He sat upright against the headboard, his eyes darting over to her. "You've been thinking about…the future?"

She peeked up at him and then shyly nodded.

"And…children?"

She mutely nodded, burrowing under the cover. She yelped when the cover was pulled away. She looked up into golden eyes.

"Tell me what else you've been thinking of," he said, placing a kiss on her forehead then trailing down her face to her neck, before he gently sucked on her neck.

"You're… not upset?"

"About what?"

"You don't mind then?" she changed her question. "Having children…with me?"

"I think we have a lot to discuss tonight," he said, nibbling on her lips.

She smiled against his relentless kisses. "Oh, this will be an interesting year," she said in between breath.

Sesshoumaru paused.

He narrowed his eyes.

She cracked a grin.

"The dinner…"

"Happy Year of the Dog, Sesshoumaru," she said, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him closer to her.