Viva la Vida by cmsully

Viva la Vida part 1

*I don't own InuYasha or any of its characters.  I also don't own 'Viva la Vida' by Coldplay.

--------------------------------

The auditorium was filled with eager students who were finally taking that last step for adulthood, the teachers and other faculty that had guided toward this very moment, and the families and friends who had supported them every step of the way.

Kagome Higurashi nervously adjusted her uniform as she half-listened to the school band play.  The time when she would stand in front of everyone and sing was coming.  While she had been honored that they had asked her… the song that she was going to sing was definitely going to be emotional, and in more ways than anyone except her family knew.

After all, only they knew of her struggles during the past three years.  The emotional breakdown when she discovered the Well to be sealed, her depression at being unable to see Inuyasha again… they had witnessed everything, and helped her in every way they could.

In fact, it had been Souta who introduced her to the song that she would be singing today. 

He had developed a fascination with the American band Coldplay, and one day as she had been helping her mother deliver laundry had caught him rocking out in his bedroom to one of their songs.  While at first she was all set to tease him about it… suddenly, she started to listen to the lyrics of the song that had been playing.

Oh, how they had so coincided with her situation, her feelings of loss due to the lack of magic and youkai in this time period… needless to say, she immediately pressured Souta to give her a copy of the song (which he had been glad to do) and spent a good amount of time memorizing the song.

When Ayumi had asked (pressured) her to perform at the Senior Talent show (which brought back the memories of the school festival that had been plagued by youkai and culminated with Inuyasha going overboard and destroying the roof), she had thought long and hard about what song she would sing.  Finally, she decided to just sing the song that had captured so much of her attention in its original language.

The rest, most would say, was history.  She was met with resounding success, and led the Student Council to request that she sing ‘Viva la Vida’ during the graduation ceremony.  After thinking about it for a day (during which she talked it over with her family), she decided to go ahead and accept.

“Kagome, you’ll be fine!” whispered Yuka, noticing Kagome’s distress.

Eri, hearing this, turned towards them and added, “Yeah, Kagome!  There’s nothing for you to worry about.  After all, you’ve already done it once before, so why are you getting nervous now?”

“Maybe Inuyasha is supposed to come.  After all, if it was my boyfriend hearing me for the first time, I’d sure be nervous,” mused Yuka.

Confused, Eri asked, “But isn’t he overseas with his family right now?”

Kagome sighed as the two girls promptly forgot about her as they immediately started to gossip about her beloved hanyou’s supposed trip to America.  It had been the only believable explanation she could come up with at the time, as she doubted they would’ve believed the truth as to why he hadn’t been around for the past several years.

What she never realized, however, is that another being was listening in on their conversation… one whom she was very familiar with.

After all, how could she have known that her principal was none other than Inuyasha’s older brother in disguise?

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Sesshomaru, former Lord of the Western Lands and one of the four Heads of the Youkai Ruling Council, sat there with his customary stoic expression on his face.  The time was coming when the miko would perform her song… then, the end of the graduation ceremony would come.

He surprisingly had mixed feelings about that particular event… however, perhaps maybe they weren’t so surprising, considering his true nature.

Despite his dislike for his half-brother, the fact remained that Inuyasha had and always would be a member of his pack… and the miko, once she went back and mated the hanyou, would soon become a member as well.

A member who, once this version of her went back into the past to stay, would truly be gone forever.

Shaking his head minutely to clear the harsh memories, he turned his attention back to the ceremony.  He had overheard whispers of excitement about Kagome’s upcoming part of the ceremony, and briefly regretted having to miss the Talent Show in order to take care of a crisis that had occurred in the dimension that now housed a large amount of the world’s youkai… and several humans who wielded strong holy power.

Finally, the moment everyone had been waiting for arrived.  As the miko’s name was called out, Sesshomaru focused on her.  As she walked towards the stage, he could smell the nervousness radiating from her… yet, he could tell by the set of her shoulders that she was determined to do this.  Once again, he felt a grudging admiration towards the young female who had rarely shown fear of him, the Killing Perfection.

As she took the microphone in her hand and waited for the music to come on, he was curious as to what song she would sing.  Would it be a song that would be cliché for a graduation ceremony, or something else?

Suddenly, the opening notes of her song started to fill the auditorium.  One disguised silver eyebrow rose as he listened… he had never heard this one before.  As the miko started to sing, however, he was hard-pressed to conceal his utter shock.

“I used to rule the world/ Seas would rise when I gave the word/ Now in the morning I sleep alone/ Sweep the streets that I used to own,” she sang in English.

Stunned, Sesshomaru continued to listen to the lyrics of the songs.  They fit so well with his situation, that of a man (well, in his case daiyoukai) who was reflecting on how his once powerful life had crumbled all around him thanks to time’s cruel hands.

While at first he was confused by her choice, as he thought about her behavior when she had first returned after Naraku’s defeat he realized the reason why she would choose this song out of all others.

The lyrics themselves may have fit his situation… but the feelings behind them fit hers.  Indeed, he could sympathize with her on the perceived loss of magic, adventure, and wonder that he now knew she had felt whenever she traveled through the Feudal Era… for sometimes, despite being able to travel to a place where those things still existed, he missed being able to display his true nature out in the open.

“I hear Jerusalem bells ringing/ Roman calvary choirs are singing/ Be my mirror, my sword, my shield/ My missionaries in a foreign field,” she belted out, unshed tears that he was sure only he could see swimming in her eyes.  “For some reason I can’t explain/ I know Saint Peter won’t call my name/ Never an honest word/ But that was when I ruled the world.”

Shaking his head so slightly at that point, he thought to himself at the utter irony of this situation.  Never would he have imagined that the miko he had tried to kill on numerous occasions would be singing a song that he could actually relate to.

If Jaken had still been alive at this point, he would’ve undoubtedly fainted in fear upon seeing the small smile that appeared on the daiyoukai’s face as Kagome Higurashi finished her song and bowed to a roaring crowd.

Well played, miko.  Well played.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

“Wow, Sis!  You did great!” gushed Souta as he ran towards his big sister.  Her friends had met up with their families immediately after the ceremony, leaving her temporarily alone… well, at least until Souta had run way ahead of the rest of the family.

Smiling, Kagome hugged her brother as she replied, “Aw, thanks Souta!”

“Indeed, congratulations are in order Miss Higurashi,” came a deep voice.

The two Higurashi siblings turned to see Kagome’s now former principal sauntering towards them.  Kagome’s eyes widened as she looked at his handsome, yet oddly scary form.  While she rarely dealt with the man, she knew that while for the most part he was fair in his dealings with the students, he was very strict and intimidating when it came to punishing those who broke the rules.  He expected all of his students to behave with honor and dignity, and many rose to the challenge in response.

In fact, now that she thought about it, Principal Nishiyori reminded her of Sesshomaru in many ways.  Certainly, the daiyoukai she had once known had the same effect on the youkai of his time.

Inwardly frowning, she wondered why she had never made the comparison between the two before.  Shaking her head slightly, she bowed as she responded, “Thank you, Principal Nishiyori.”

Nodding his head in acknowledgement, her (as of several minutes ago) former principal watched as Souta noticed the other two members of the Higurashi family having difficulty getting through the crowd of excited graduates.  As soon as the young Higurashi male politely excused himself and left, he turned back towards the young woman as he commented, “I admit, I’m surprised at your choice of song.  What made you choose that particular one?”

Stiffening slightly, Kagome quickly laughed as she answered quickly, “Well, my brother’s a huge fan of the band who originally sang that song, and it got stuck in my head so… yeah!”

A dark eyebrow rose as he said, “Hnn.”

Kagome just barely held back the double take at that utterance.  Was it just her, or did her principal just act almost identical the daiyoukai she had only just started to compare him to?

The eyebrow returned to its former position as its owner observed, “That was not the impression I received as I watched you.  The impression that I got was that of a young woman who was expressing feelings that were being held in a place that few ever see… feelings of loss, of sorrow, of bitter pride, all of these and more I sensed from you.”

The poor young graduate could barely stifle her gasp at his accurate observation.  How could he have seen all that?!?

Inscrutable hazel eyes boring into confused sapphire eyes, the next words he spoke managed to finally force a visible reaction from her:  “Tell me… when you sang of the mirror, the sword, and the shield, were you perhaps thinking of specific people who might’ve filled those roles in your life?”

The former Shikon Miko’s eyes widened, then narrowed as she summoned the fearlessness she had once used against an evil spider hanyou and half-growled, “And how, pray tell, would you know anything about why I might’ve chosen to sing ‘Viva la Vida’?  What possessed you to make those kinds of assumptions, Principal Nishiyori?”

A smirk appeared as he replied, “Because, Miss Higurashi, I too could relate to that song… although, the lyrics fit me more than the feelings behind it, I’ll admit.”

Her jaw dropped.  What did he mean by that?

As her family finally drew closer, he inclined his head in an obvious farewell as he finished, “May we see each other again very soon… miko.”

Kagome gasped with shock, then stared in disbelief as he exchanged a few words with her mother then left. For in that moment, as he uttered the title that, by all rights, he shouldn’t have known, his features had blurred… and then dissolved for only a second.  Hazel eyes had turned to gold, black hair had turned to silver, and very distinctive markings had appeared on his forehead and cheeks.

Had she finally gone crazy?  Or… had that really been… Sesshomaru?

“May we see each other again very soon, miko.”

Suddenly, Kagome couldn’t wait to get home.

--------------------------------------------

A/N:  I haven't decided on whether or not I should turn this into a two-shot... any thoughts?  And hooray for my first Dokuga submission!  EDIT:  Wow, seems like on all three sites I posted this story many people want a continuation... so, thanks to ANOTHER song inspiring me, I'm turning this into a one-shot collection!  And yes, there WILL be a part two of this story of what happens to Sesshomaru once Kagome goes through the well for the last time!  I'm going to warn you, though, with what I have planned it may bring tears...