Inuyasha 1. Chapter 1

Hi peoples! I'm so psyched cuz this is my first story, so please please please read and enjoy!XDD I don't own anything except the 3-yr-old but still delicious girl scout cookies under my bed, sooo… yeah. Onward, cow!;D (Kaede says this in Inuyasha, I'm not just being a freak).

**Chapter 1: Welcome to Takahashi High**

"Kagome! Time to get up!"

"Mrrrghhh…" A pale hand snaked out from beneath a mass of flower printed blankets, groping blindly across a bedside table until it met what it was looking for. A pair of sleepy sapphire eyes met the blinking green neon of a digital clock.

"MOOOOOOOOM!!!! WHAT THE F-HECK??!!! IT'S FIVE IN THE FREAKING MORNING!!!!!!! AAAAAAAARRRRGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!"

"Jeez, honey, excuse _me_…" I heard my mom slamming down a pot with unnecessary vigor and muttering about spoiled brats and missing coffee beans. I sighed dramatically and rolled out of my bed onto the stone-cold, stone-hard floor. Is this what you call getting up on the wrong side of the bed, I wondered? Not a good omen.

Today was going to be my first day of school. I had been to many, many schools in many, many places ever since my dad died, but I would never be able to get over the first-day nerves. Maybe it had something to do with how in every school I went to I was always the outcast, the awkward girl on the side who either made a fool of herself or kept her mouth tightly closed so nothing embarrassing could slip out. Either way, I hated school, and I was sure this one wouldn't be any different. I sighed again and tried to fluff up my thin, ragged black hair. Should I wear it in a hiding bun or a low, inconspicuous ponytail? God, I hate my life…

-3 hours later-

"Have a nice day, sweetheart!"

"YATHINK?!!"

My mom drove off rather hurriedly. I looked up, evil grin plastered across my face, and into the eyes of about 15 freaked out girls.

"Um…hi…?"

Today was going to be a WONDERFUL day. I could already tell.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

"Hey dude! Watsup, Hojo? Really? Oh hey! Out of my way, Naraku. Dude, you are TOTALLY going down… oh, hi Kenshin… yeah, can you like, MOVE??? NOW???? Oh, no thanks, no I don't like chocolates, Saya… Did you know they ROT YOUR TEETH??!! Yeah, now get out of my FREAKIN WAY!!!"

My name is Inuyasha. And this is what I have to do to get to my freakin' LOCKER. Being the most popular guy in the school has its drawbacks. There's the fangirls, (ew) that creep Jakotsu (double ew)(and his freaky "Gang of Seven"- those guys have some CRAZY tattoos), that total JERK Naraku, the guy obsessed with playing mind games and gloating evilly over shiny marbles, and whom I would SERIOUSLY kill if…uh, there weren't so many girls around… yeah… Where was I ? Oh yeah… there's my three best friends, Miroku, Kenshin and Koga, whose greatest goals in life are to make mine HELL. Miroku is a total playboy with, like 17 girlfriends now…? I kinda lost track… And Koga is just plain annoying, always getting in my way… And Kenshin….he's awesome except he looks like a GIRL….Plus he's just TOO nice… But, anyhow, about me. On the outside I seem like a normal 15 year-old, popular, cute,(no, I'm not afraid to admit it) and pretty much just a cool guy. (Cheeayah!) But the truth is, I really don't belong here. But you'll find out about that later.

Today was just a normal day. Me and Miroku and Kenshin and Koga had martial arts w/ Master Kakashi first period. (That guy is so frustrating! And mysterious! God, I hate that mask!) As usual, me and Koga beat up Miroku within 1 minutes of the beginning of the sparring session while Kenshin just stood there being like, 'Nooo! I can't hurt him! I'd feel bad! Besides, then my girlfriend would beat ME up!' and Miroku was just pretending to be way more hurt than he was so the girls would come over and croon allover him and he could add a # 18 to the list. But the girls just thought I was awesome, except some of the dumber ones who hadn't yet learned to stay away from _the hands that grope_ yet. So as usual he started whining about having to go to the nurse because I seriously broke his arm and Master Kakashi just appeared behind him and whacked him over the head with a random stick (where does he get these things? We're in the gym!) reading his porn book the whole time. (that guy was totally a ninja in another life). Let me tell you about the other kids in my class. (It's all guys, by the way, to protect us from the GIRL FURY. Actually, all the guys in the whole grade- Takahashi High is actually a pretty small, prestigious school, believe it or not). There's me, obviously. I have long, silky, beautiful night black hair and deep purple eyes. Miroku has short, really dark brown hair in a retarded little rat's tail on the back of his head and blue eyes. Kenshin has long, insanely red hair he keeps in a ponytail all the time, a cross-shaped scar on his cheek from where his crazy old girlfriend cut him before she died (long story) and these huge purple eyes like me. Kouga has long black hair he wears in a really high ponytail and these kinda creepy blue-green eyes. Naraku (oh GOD I hate him!) has reeeeeeeeally long wavy black hair and really sinister red eyes. (They seriously give me the heebijeebies!) Master Kakashi has gravity- defying gray hair, and wears this creepy black mask and headband that covers everything but one eye. I think the best way to describe him would be as a cool and supa-powaful but totally lackadaisical pervert. Then there's a bunch of other kids who I'm kinda friends with- that annoying brat Naruto, that creeper Sasuke, et cetera ad infinitum. There's really no point in describing them all to you because this story isn't about them. It's about ME.

Anyhow, after martial arts we had History. Always a boring class, with Master Hajime. Except Master Hajime is terrifying. But somehow he still manages to be boring. And if you don't pay attention he beats you with a random stick, just like Master Kakashi. (It's a conspiracy to murder students! It really, really hurts!) But it's usually Naruto getting beaten while we all sleep … he has some personal vendetta against the color orange, I think.

It was on the way back from History to our lockers that we saw the crowd. And from inside it came those unmistakable sounds- a slap, a squeal, the stomp of a high heeled boot as the two adversaries would circle around like two cobras within the ring of curious spectators. A GIRL FIGHT.

"I, uh, need to get a drink…" I told my excited (except for Kenshin) friends, and walked as quickly as I could away from the crowd. I had seen more than enough girl fights in my life. Oh, God, I had. Suddenly a girl pushed through the crowd and ran right into me. Great, one of the fighters. Just what I had been looking for. I scowled and looked down at the slender black- haired girl sprawled on the ground

And I think I felt my heart stop. But I had left that all behind me! She was supposed to be dead!

"K-Kikyo…?"

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

For a second I thought I was dreaming because there was no way, in the world of reality, that a guy could be that gorgeous, that devastatingly perfect. He would have to be a god. Immediately I forgot all about my terrible morning and just became lost in his eyes.

They were a deep amethyst, the color of mist over mountains in the sunset, of wildflowers in a sun-drenched field, of the strange jewel he had hung around his neck… I blinked. It wasn't really a jewel, just the shard of one. He had long, shining black hair, falling like a gentle waterfall of night over his glowing, flawless, perfectly tanned face. He had a cute nose, high cheek-bones, slightly parted lips… He was wearing ripped jeans and blood-red sweatshirt out of which the jewel shard had fallen. The world vanished and suddenly nothing existed except for him and me. Just like that, I fell in love. For about 15 seconds I was too busy oggling him to notice the expression on his face. He looked shocked, afraid, like his whole world had just fallen apart before him.

"K-Kikyo…?" He whispered brokenly. It took me a while, screaming in my head about how even his voice was unbelievably sexy, to comprehend what he had just said, and by then he had started to back away unsteadily, his eyes wild.

"Wh-what? My name isn't… isn't Kikyo. It's…. Kagome…Um… Are you okay?" I was getting a little worried by now. What was he talking about? And why was he backing away from me like I was the plague. I'm not that ugly, am I? It was starting to make me… mad. He raised a shaking finger and practically yelled, his voice hoarse,

"Don't you lie to me Kikyo! Stop acting so innocent! You ruined my life! I thought I'd finally gotten away, was finally able to make a new life for myself here! I was almost… almost… happy… You're supposed to be dead! Why won't you leave me alone!"

And with that he ran blindly down the hallway, arms tight around his chest as if his heart was trying to escape.

For a while I think I just sat there, staring in shock. What a weird experience. Then the harsh ringing of the late bell jolted me back to reality. I grabbed my books and ran.

The day had been a trying one for me. When the teachers announced my name in class, I had tripped over someone's outstretched leg walking between the aisles of desks. I had fallen flat on my face and almost everyone, including the teacher, some witch with spiky black hair who said her name was Anko. Then no one wanted to sit next to me so I got put next to this fat kid with curlicues on his cheeks who ate potato chips underneath his desk and a bratty girl with long blond hair she kept flicking over her shoulder and a high pitched squeal of a laugh that sounded like a dying pig. I was pretty sure it was her who tripped me. The class was Science. I got all the questions wrong, and once again, almost everyone laughed in my face. I hated them all. Well, except for maybe a girl with long black hair in a high ponytail whose name was Kaoru, and a shy girl with pale violet eyes and short blue-black hair- Hinata. I couldn't find my locker and so I was late for my next class as well- martial arts. Of course I hadn't remembered that we needed a change of clothes for that so the teacher, an incredibly tall blond woman with eyes as green as sour apples yelled at me for about five minutes. And then of course there's the fact that I REALLY, REALLY suck at martial arts. Some girl with anger management problems beat me up faster than it takes to make instant ramen. And for me, a learned pro with years of experience, that's pretty fast. But ( and this is like the only good part of my day so far, except for seeing the hottest guy in the universe) this nice- looking girl with long dark brown hair in a high ponytail helped me up.

"My name's Sango," she said. "And it looks like you need some help."

So she helped me with my abysmal martial art skills. She was really good. And by the end of the lesson I was happy to say I had made my first friend.

We were walking down the hall, talking- me, happy and excited, her- kind and interested. That was when that BRAT with the pig squeal tripped me again. And once again, I fell flat on my face, spilling my books allover the floor. And it REALLY hurt. I got up slowly, my head throbbing strangely.

"Okay pig-girl," I said pleasantly ( my most dangerous tone of voice, if you know me) "That's it. You're going doooown."

She gave an obnoxious little giggle and, fast as lighting, kicked me in the stomach with a high heeled boot. I punched her in the face. The fight was on.

So basically, my day so far. I'm in trouble with the teachers, have a bloody lip and am covered in bruises, have about one friend, fell in love with a guy who thinks I'm someone called Kikyo who ruined his life, and am already failing. God, I wonder what the afternoon will bring. I really, really hate my life.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

My nightmare had come to life. It was as simple as that. I ran through empty halls, my frantic footfalls and desperately hammering heart the only sounds in the deathly stillness. Everything started to fade, colors fading and blurring. The endless rows of lockers turned into cold gray steel prisons. The fizzing electric lights stuttered, flickered, and went out one by one, leaving me in darkness. I pitched forward and fell the ground, tears springing to my eyes. I relished the pain. It almost distracted me from the tearing pain inside my chest. I curled up in a ball on the cold floor and felt around my neck and found the shard. The last piece left. My trembling fingers slipped, and I felt the tiny stab of pain and the following warm trickle of crimson. The edges were just too sharp, too jagged. I had given her my heart, held it bleeding out to her and she had taken it, and with that same sweet, innocent smile, had ripped it clean in two. And now she was back. There was nowhere to run, not without any light. I had come to a dead end. I'd crossed worlds and still she had found me. I would never be free. Oh, God, she was supposed to be dead!

Much, later, I finally felt my legs beneath me again. The empty corridor was lit by a gray light that seemed to come from nowhere. The silence pressed on my ears like cotton wool, stifling me when I wanted to run and scream. I forced my legs onward.

"I don't feel good, Mrs. Garcias."

"Good God, child, you look terrible! Go home and lie down, okay dearie? Don't come back until you feel better."

"Don't worry, I won't. Goodbye, Mrs. Garcias."

As I turned the corner and swung open the door, the receptionist called after me,

"Inuyasha? Did you know you're bleeding?"

I shut the door and walked out into the watery gray light of yet another ruined world.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

He was gone. Just gone! Well, I had known that it was a dream. He was just too good to be true. But still… I couldn't get him out of my head.

"Sango…?"

"Mhhhmmm…"

"Sango, are you listening to me??"

"Mayyyyyyyybe... Oh no, please don't shut it off, Kagome! That's the best part…!"

"Sango. Listen. Do. You. Know. A guy with. Long. Black. Hair. And purple eyes… who's incredibly cute… and has a purple necklace? And wears red?

"You mean Inuyasha?"

"Eeeeeeeeee!!! You know him??"

"Of course I do! He's only the most popular guy in the whole school!"

"Really…? ….Oh. Well, he's been absent for a while, y'know.

Hinata, sitting on the other side of the couch, nestled in blanket depicting fuzzy bunnies in purple pajamas piped in,

"Yeah, it's k-kinda weird… H-he's never been absent before, as far as I kn-know…"

I sighed. I had the weirdest feeling that he'd left because of me. But that was stupid! I'd only seen him about a minute before he had disappeared like a sakura petal in a cold wind…

I was in Sango's bedroom watching Pirates of the Carribean 3 with my friends Sango, Hinata, Kaoru, a girl with 2 black buns called Tenten, Eri, a nice girl with short black hair, Ayame, a spunky redhead, and Yuki, a quiet girl with huge eyes and short brown hair. It felt great having so many wonderful friends after my first terrible day. I was actually starting to like Takahashi High! But I still couldn't get the thought of that boy, Inuyasha, out of my head. Somehow he looked so familiar, and yet so out of place… It was if I had known him in another life, like he had come from a totally different world, a dangerous, beautiful, mysterious world that he had broken free from for some reason or other. Perhaps because of the girl called Kikyo. And now perhaps he had returned to that world, and I would never see him again. It was probably already too late. But… maybe…

The sound of clashing swords brought me back to reality.

"To be sure you have to be lost to find an island that cannot be found," howled Captain Barbosa. I turned away from the screen.

"I'm gonna go get a drink, okay?"

My friends were too deep in the world of pirates and death to hear me. I shrugged and shut the door.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

It had been 5 days and if I squinted I was positive I could see the dent I had worn in the floor with my pacing. I sighed and banged my head on the desk.

"OOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWW!!!!!!! OH GODDAMMIT THAT HURT!!!!!"

Deciding I needed a better way to express my anger that wasn't potentially harmful to myself, I settled on giving a cheap scarlet lamp the evilest death glare I could muster. The stupid thing didn't even flinch. The tiny 1-bed apartment was silent, but I was used to that. I had left my family behind long ago, and silence didn't bother me anymore. At least, it hadn't used to.

My stomach growled obnoxiously.

"Shut up, you" I snarled. It snarled back, louder. I sighed.

"Okay, you win," I groaned, picking up the phone and pressing the speed dial for Ichiraku ramen.

"Wait- God, did I just have a conversation with my stomach?"

"Excuse me sir?"

I went red from my neck to my hair.

"May I have two servings of ramen?"

"For two?"

"No, for one."

Later in my room, sipping the ramen (or heaven on earth, as I call it) I pondered my next move. It was obvious Kikyo was somehow back and set on terrorizing me. Well, I wouldn't let her. But could I be strong enough? With a final slurp, I sucked up the last noodle with relish and, hands trembling, broke the fortune cookie in half.

"Do not let the past taint the present. Learn Chinese-strength=力量"

Immediately the shaking in my hands stopped. I could be strong. Like my father, dying so I might live. Like my mother, who suffered on and on for her undying love. Like my brother, surrounded by impenetrable armor, so would I be. I wasn't terribly surprised when the doorbell rang.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

I was so nervous. Even though I had rehearsed what I wanted to say hundreds of times in my head, I knew as surely as I knew that Fall follows Summer that I would screw things up and my beautiful angel would fly back to his secret world beyond the clouds. I wrung my hands, turning the tiny slip of paper that held my fate on it over and over again-

'Do not let your dreams fly away or your whole life you will regret letting so precious slip through your hands. Learn Chinese- dream=梦想'

I reached up and rang the doorbell.


	2. Chapter 2

Still own the one moldy doughnut I have been hoarding in my closet for the past 10 years… that's about it. Sorry Society of STEALING THE SLIGHTEST IDEA THAT I MIGHT OWN SOMETHING WORTHWHILE ( ALL ANIME AND ONLY ANIME). If you want to steal Inuyasha from someone so bad go ask Rumiko Takahashi- I'm sure she keeps a grenade launcher for EVIL PEOPLE LIKE YOU.

Chapter 2

I suppose I should tell you the crazy, mysterious, and totally unreasonable series of events that have left me wringing my hands on the doorstep of a guy I'd barely even met. Then you might, just might, be able to comprehend my exceedingly twisted reasoning. With me so far?

Okay, so I was at Sango's, right? And we had a sleepover. And so of course we all had to confess our crushes. Kaoru was already going out with Kenshin, Sango liked some pervert kid called Miroku, Ayame liked Koga, Hinata liked Naruto, Tenten like Neiji, Eri liked Hojo, and Yuki liked some college guy called Kaname (and also kinda a 10th grader called Zero). And I liked Inuyasha. And I was actually stupid enough to confess the events of our meeting and his following disappearance to 7 drama-hungry girls. Big mistake.

"Eeeeeeeeee! That is soo mysterious! I never knew THE Inuyasha had had a girlfriend! And she broke his heart…! Well, that explains why he never went out with anyone."

"And he thought you were- what was her name?-Kikyo… I hope he's okay, he sounds like he's really torn up. He better not have jumped off a bridge or something."

"Are we still talking about Inuyasha? You know, cute, popular, happy-ish, the one everyone (well, at least almost everyone) loves? What is this I hear of suicide?"

"I-I think you should really g-go talk to him, Kagome…. Just to, y'know, m-make sure he's okay…. H-He'll probably feel better if he knows you're actually n-not Kikyo…"

"Yeah Kags, you should really go see him, make sure he's okay…" (snigger snigger)

"Oh yeah! Kags, he needs you to come and ease his broken heart. Try bringing flowers, I've heard they help…" ( snigger snigger snort)

"You can look at it as a dare!!!!!!! Whooooh!!! Okay, it's decided! Time for supper!!!!!!!!!!"

"B-but…"

And with that, their decision I should go to see Inuyasha was final. But I still had my doubts… Until the fortune cookie, at least.

"Open it, Kaoru! What does it say?"

"Uhhh… 'Once you have found true love, never let it go. Learn Chinese- Love=愛'"

"Aw, that must mean Kenshin! So you really love him, Kaoru, don't you?"

"Well… Yeah, I guess…"

"Cheeaayh! How sweet! Now your turn, Hinata."

"O-Okay…'Never give up. Learn Chinese- determination= 決心' Oh my gosh! That's what N-Naruto always says! W-wow!"

"Awesome, Hinata! I smell loooooove in the air! Now your turn, Kags!"

I looked down at the crumpled cellophane in my hands. The fortune cookie inside was blurred, as though I was seeing into another world. I ripped it quickly and the cookie suddenly became real again. I relaxed, and with a quick, clean turn of my wrist, broke the fortune cookie in two. And so that's why I'm standing at door of the guy I love who probably doesn't even know I exist, except, perhaps, as a mirror of another face, a face that caused him pain. The door opened.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

There she was , staring up at me with that same sweet face as if it was only yesterday we had sat up in that tree looking at the stars and she had wrenched me apart inside. Her silken black locks, somehow wavier than I had remembered, tumbled across flawless moonlit skin. That same beautiful nose, same perfect face, same long black lashes… But somehow, something seemed different. Her eyes seemed much larger and younger somehow, not the blue of a frozen lake in winter reflecting a wind-scoured sky but the blue of a cloudless spring morning, cerulean orbs glimmering in an almost…merry sort of way. Now that I looked closer, she did look quite a bit different. She was shorter, for one thing. And wearing modern clothes- a short green skirt and white blouse. And the nervous look in her eyes and pale rose blush on her cheeks couldn't have belonged to his Kikyo, could it?

Then she spoke, and the voice sealed it. This couldn't possibly be Kikyo's voice. It was much too young, innocent, nervous and yet somehow melodic as the chirping of birds, like the sweet sound of warm spring rain on the roof of his old, now abandoned hut back home. No, I told myself fiercely, not home. This was my home now. And this girl was not Kikyo, no matter how much she resembled her. I was free after all! I felt my chest lighten as if filled with helium. I was really free!

"I-I just w-wanted to… to see if you were okay…" she stumbled out. " I mean, when I first saw you, you seemed… seemed sad, and then you weren't at school, and I … Well I thought m-maybe it had something to do with me. You said you thought I was someone called K…called Kikyo…?"

I felt like jumping around and singing. It really wasn't her! Dead was dead!

"Hah!!!" I shouted gleefully. "Hahahaahahaaaa…….. uh, hi…"

The girl was looking at me really strangely now. I blushed. Trying to pull myself together, I said,

"Um, would you like to come in?"

"Er…. No thanks, but th-thanks for asking. I… have something I have to do. See you!"

And with that she ran off to a hot pink bicycle parked on the sidewalk and biked off as fast as she could, swerving a lot as if she wasn't quite in control of the wheel. Still bright red and cursing my stupidity, I slammed the door vigorously and skipped inside, happiness and embarrassment mixing inside of me like baking powder and vinegar. And for those of you who don't know, that is not a very good combination. I remembered the girl's freaked out face and groaned. She was actually very pretty… but the resemblance to Kikyo really was quite disturbing. I sighed and picked up the phone. Time for a celebration! Ichiraku ramen, here I come!

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

I pedaled down the street as fast as I could, legs churning. What a weird guy… Well at least he didn't seem heartbroken anymore… But talk about mood swings…! The first time I had met him he looked like killing himself, and now he looked like he had just won the lottery! And he was supposed to be the most popular guy at Takahashi High! Well, he was just as hot as I had remembered. If not hotter. Maybe he had realized I wasn't this girl called Kikyo, but that I was much more beautiful, and was now following after me on his sleek black motorcycle, and any second would come up behind me and ask me if I wanted a ride…We'd stop at an ice cream place, and we'd share a mint chocolate chip and black raspberry cone with sprinkles and some grated chocolate and a cherry on top and our faces would bump and we'd kiss…and then we'd go to the beach and beneath a night sky spangled with stars we'd hold hands and he'd ask me to be his girlfriend… I was so deep in my Inuyasha dreams that I didn't see the truck right in front of me until it was too late. I pedaled down the street as fast as I could, legs churning. What a weird guy… Well at least he didn't seem heartbroken anymore… But talk about mood swings…! The first time I had met him he looked like killing himself, and now he looked like he had just won the lottery! And he was supposed to be the most popular guy at Takahashi High! Well, he was just as hot as I had remembered. If not hotter. Maybe he had realized I wasn't this girl called Kikyo, but that I was much more beautiful, and was now following after me on his sleek black motorcycle, and any second would come up behind me and ask me if I wanted a ride…We'd stop at an ice cream place, and we'd share a mint chocolate chip and black raspberry cone with sprinkles and some grated chocolate and a cherry on top and our faces would bump and we'd kiss…and then we'd go to the beach and beneath a night sky spangled with stars we'd hold hands and he'd ask me to be his girlfriend… I was so deep in my Inuyasha dreams that I didn't see the truck right in front of me until it was too late.

- 1 day later-

I was running through a mist. My feet made no sound on the unseen floor beneath me. In fact there was no sound at all, at first. Then came a quiet rustling, starting practically imperceptible, just a slight niggling at my brain. But then it grew. Next came the laughter. It was a girl's voice, high and cold and bitter. Black shapes moved in the mist around me and started to take shape. Demons emerged, each more hideous than the last, circling around me. They came closer and closer until I screamed and closed my eyes. There was a sharp rending sound, a guttural scream of rage, and then silence. I opened my eyes. There above me was Inuyasha, in all his flawless glory, his lip lifted in a snarl and his upraised hand dripping with black blood. Except… different. His hair, instead of ebony, was the color of moonlit snow and his eyes were liquid gold with slit pupils. He had fangs, claws, and strangest and yet most intriguing of all, fuzzy white ears on the top of his head. At once I felt an overpowering desire to touch them. I reached up…

And heard a scream.

"Eeeeeeeeee sis stop it you're pulling my hair!!! Owwieeeeeee!!!"

"Huh…?"

I blinked. At first all I could see was a blinding white light. Then faces emerged, peach-colored blurs rimmed by halos of dark hair. I blinked again.

"Souta?" I whispered, my voice cracking, "What's going on? Why I am I… in the hospital? And what are you all doing here?"

I was in a sterile white hospital bed, connected to buzzing, bleeping machines, strangely reminiscent of the alarm clock I hated so much, and IV stuck in my hand and my whole body filled with a strange tingling numbness. I was covered with bandages and my left arm and leg were in huge casts. Ringed around me, pale faces filled with excitement, were Souta, Mom, Grandad, Sango, Hinata, Kaoru, Yuki, Tenten, Ayame, Eri, and Inuyasha. With this last discovery, I felt Filled suddenly with a fuzzy warmth that had absolutely nothing to do with the pain killer.

"Bleep! Bleep! Bleepbleepbleepbleepbleep!"

"Oh no! Her heart rate's speeding up! Quick, get the [insert some official sounding medicine name here]!"

I blushed.

"So what are you guys, uh, doing here?"

"Well, of course we had to come over as soon as we found out you got hurt! We were so worried!"

"Are you feeling okay, dear?"

"Yeah, how are you, Kags?"

I had eyes only for Inuyasha.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, and then reddened like a tomato once again. What a rude thing to say! Now he was going to regret coming and think I was evil and we would never get married because he would fly back to his world over the rainbow… He was sooo handsome!!! Savor the moment before it's gone! Savor the moment, Kagome!

"Well, I was kinda freaked when I found out you had gotten hit by a car on your way back from my house… I should have offered you a ride…"

I noticed the insanely curious eyes of my friends drilling holes into me and gave them the dirtiest look I could muster, hissing, "I'll tell you later." Turning back to Inuyasha I gave him an apologetic smile which faltered when I saw the freaked out look on his face. He had thought I was glaring at him!

"Weeeeeeell I guess I'll get going then…" he said and with that disappeared from the room with a final suspicious look. My friends broke into the most obnoxious fit of giggles I had ever heard.

"Wait…" I cried, but it was too late. I sighed, my heart sinking, and was about to have an argument with myself ('You should never have said that! Now look what you've done! He thinks you're a freak!' 'B-b-b-but…' and so on…) when a truly terrible thought occurred to me. What if I had said his name in my dream? Or maybe something even more embarrassing…. And all with him and my family and friends standing right there… I felt sick.

"I, uh, didn't say anything while I was sleeping… did I?"

At once my friends (and Granddad) broke into another hysterical fit of giggling. I had a very bad feeling about this. Even my mom was laughing quietly. Souta looked around him as if suddenly discovering he was in a loony bin. Wake up call, little bro…..

"Uh, well, you kept saying 'Fuzzy! Fuzzy! Must touch!' and then you grabbed my hair and I yelled and you woke up. I t was kinda freaky, actually…"

"…Oh."

My friends laughed even harder, if possible.

I became a human tomato.

"Well, ah, thanks for coming to stare and laugh at me while I was snoring in a freakin' COMA. You're such wooooooooonderful friends." My temper was starting to rise again, prodded by the sudden and embarrassing disappearance of my one true love. "You couldn't have woken me up, could you? But nooooooo, you had to stand there and titter while INUYASHA (significant look) was WATCHING?? I don't think I've ever been so embarrassed in my life!!! I hate you!!!! All of you!!!!!"

And with that I disappeared under my covers and started to beat up my cheap hospital pillow. How dare it witness my shame and still just stand there snidely, as if sniggering right along with those miserable people I had thought were my friends and dear family!!! With a loud RIP the pillow tore in half. There was a significant silence outside my shabby white-sheeted shelter, like the lull before the storm… And then the longest, loudest, and most humiliating laughter it ever has been, and ever will be, my misfortune to endure in this life.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

I walked quickly and purposefully along the shining white-tiled floor of the hospital, my greatly dulled but still operative nose direly offended by the sickening smell of the hospital. It smelled of death and sterile stainless-steel operating tables and bleach. I was trying to understand myself… and failing miserably. My train of thought was as follows:

Okay, so there's this undeniably pretty girl who looks almost exactly like Kikyo but isn't. And she was hit by a car on her way back from my house. And now there's this ringing ache in my chest which can only be taken away by seeing her again. Whenever I see her I feel… happy. It's so strange…  
It was Kagome I was thinking of when I saw the unmistakable purple glow for the first time in fifty years. But how could that be? This world, I had come to learn, was utterly devoid of magic. Sure there were legends of it but never once had I felt an aura, not event the slightest wisp of a demon nor the bittersweet tingle of a priestess. Everything was silent- the trees, the rocks, the fire, the silver- painted river… for a moment I might think I caught the gentle voice of a willow serenading the moon, or find in the cawing of a black-shrouded crow the desolate voice of a corpse-demon, and I'd whip around to find it was only the wind in the leaves, or my imagination playing tricks on me. I had been numb to it all, at first, but now, ever since I saw that girl, the utter emptiness and loneliness had finally started settling in on me. Everything was so barren, sterile, meaningless. And, as I'd slowly come to find, very boring. But back on track. For the first time in the 50 years since I'd left, the Shikon shard was glowing. And that could mean only one thing- another shard was nearby.

I raced down the sterile white hallways, head whipping around, hair flowing like a shining pool of darkness, amethyst eyes sharp, excited, and wary. What was going on? How in the seven hells had a shikon shard come to be _here_, this sanitized cesspool of sickness and reasonable humanity? It just made no sense. I must have run by at least a dozen different wings- the birthing rooms, where squalling babies gasped greedily for the offensive air, the pneumonia ward, where humans of all ages lay on thin bone-white pads wheezing and eating cold pizza, the ward of death- all those incurable diseases, mainly liver-spotted geezers jabbering at thick patient nurses, but here and there a pair of lovers weeping in each others' arms, one soon to forget, the other soon to die. And finally the children's ward. The aura, so bittersweet, stale yet familiar, was strongest there. I was through the doors with a thunderous bang and into the lion den.

There was a pregnant silence as several dozen pairs of ridiculously large eyes swiveled towards me. Then:

"Hey mister! Has anyone ever told you you look like a poodle?"

"No, no, he's a bichon-frise!"

"Shut up, loser! I know an Italian water-poochkin when I see one!!"

"Nope, you're all wrong. That's definintely a border colly. You don't think I know?"

"Play with me! I can be Mary-Elizabeth and you can be Clifford! You're big enough!"

"No! He's playing with me! He's gonna be MY puppy! Right, mister?"

"I have something you're looking for."

This last came in a fragile, broken voice, all trembly and whispy as candle smoke in a violent wind. The warring children immediately ceased their feud. All our eyes turned towards a small girl I hadn't noticed before, so hidden was she in the huge blanket engulfing her. The tiny face that peered out was shrunken and pallid, eyes enormous in a timid, wasted face, eyes pale and dull as concrete. The only interesting feature to her were the vibrant purple locks falling in shimmering locks across her tired face, like all her energy had gone into making them beautiful. All of a sudden her frail form was seized by a fit of coughing that seemed to come from her very core. It went on and on. The aura was coming from her.

After what seemed like forever in the tension-thick room, the hideous rasping ceased. The girl reached under the humongous blanket and retrieved a small pouch of glossy scarlet. And out from inside it she drew a Shikon shard.

There was a collective gasp. The sparkling brilliance of the shard lit the girl's face with a beautiful light, transforming her. For a second I could have sworn her ears became like those of a sea nymph, and I felt a flicker of an aura come out from somewhere inside her in response to the light, like the flicker of a firefly in a silent pitch-dark woods. Indeed, the whole room was lit by the startling light. The children's eyes, glued onto the sparkling shard, grew larger and larger, and became vacant, as if recalling some long forgotten thing. I felt the power start to awaken inside of me, just the tiniest sliver of what had once belonged to me, but still an unquestionable miracle.

"Please… Take it…." the girl whispered hoarsely, and then, when I continued to stand entranced, "Now!"

I crossed the room, across which were scattered discarded toys- teddy bears with the heads ripped off, sneering dolls, stone-colored blocks- and was by her side in an instant, hand eagerly outstretched. Her tiny porcelain- colored fingers extended, trembling, and placed the sliver in my hand. The power flared dangerously inside me… And the miniature hand started to crumble. Like a waif of the night she disappeared, leaving behind a shapeless bulky blanket, a pile of moon-colored dust, and the lingering ghost of a quiet smile.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

I t wasn't nearly as long as I had hoped before I was back to school again.

The only plus was automated wheel chair. Oh, I know it's sinful of me and I'll do fifty hail marys for it some day, but I just couldn't resist the temptation to run Ino over one day. Of course I went to the principal's office (some lady with anger management and insanely hunormous boobs-like me!XD Except for the boobs, of course…) I could tell me and this Principal Tsunade character were gonna get along just fine… But, as I was saying (hemhem) it was totally worth the look on Ino's face as I roared towards her on my ninjamobile2000 and the high five Inuyasha gave me. I can still feel the tingle as our palms pressed together, just for one instant, but still… And then there was just the general thrill of cruising around the halls at 40 miles an hour, terrorizing random kids who I could manage (with my intense ninja skills) to pick off from the herd… MOOHAHA!!! hemhem… *blushes* …aaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnyhoo… About Inuyasha. (We're actually kinda friends now- yipeeeeeeeeee!!!! At least, he talks to me sometimes in that just-too-hot voice of his- we have Geometry and Chemistry together!) He seems to be acting a little weird, but then, I never saw him acting normal, so… I'll look away at the teacher or something and when I go back to staring at his sexy self, he's staring at me with this terribly depressed look in his eyes, like he's recalling something miserable. Then he notices I'm staring back and jumps and blushes and looks pointedly away for the rest of the day. I see him digging his nails into the hard plastic desk- and somehow, shavings of it come off before his long slender fingers. But how could anyone be that strong? The mysteries just keep getting me more obsessed. I even looked him up on my laptop once- and I made some pretty interesting discoveries.

Apparently, he's an orphan- his mother, father, and big brother died in a terrible fire in Ugoslavia. But the strange part is, that was fifty years ago… He's either an angel or a demon- either way, I'm set on getting him and finding out his secrets. And I _always _get what I want. Now, I thought, smirking evilly, this calls for drastic measures!

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

The second the jewel shard had touched my hand I had felt a surge of power that swelled headily inside me even as the frail girl crumpled into a pile of dust on the floor before me. The kids were still hypnotized, so I had gathered the tiny pile of dust into the shiny crimson pouch and made a hasty exit. Every step felt lighter, every movement filled with power. Though only the slightest fraction of my old power, after so long being so weak, the feeling was heaven. I could bend iron gates. I could jump 12 feet in the air. My fingernails had grown considerably. And everything seemed so much clearer and brighter and… smellier. When I looked in the mirror I saw that my hair had almost imperceptibly lightened, my pupils had become vaguely oval-shaped, and my canine teeth had grown at least half a centimeter. I felt charged with power, giddy and filled to the brim with bubbly levity, like if I just spread out my powerful arms I could float up into the rose-tinged cerulean sky. I decided to bike to the conservation area and just couldn't contain myself from running like a joyful ghost through the shadowy trees, going as fast as my new legs would permit. Fifty years ago this would have been lower than nothing but after so long a frail human… well, I've already said it. Breaking through the dark trees I found myself at a small pond, fed by a tiny burbling brook. The sun was just starting to set and the glass-calm water perfectly reflected the most beautiful sky I've ever seen. The sun looked like a swollen red-magenta cherry as it wobbled unsteadily to the darkly silhouetted horizon, leaving behind it a wake of scarlet-rose, then a warm peaceful orange, then lemon to pea green to turquoise to a deep cornflower blue, flawlessly deepening into deep indigo velvet shot through with the tiny diamond studs of stars. I climbed into a blossoming cherry tree and just sat and watched the sun set.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

Though my body sat respectfully and quietly at my desk before the monotonous preaching of Master Hajime, my mind was miles away. I was devising my masterful strategy. Mission name: SIT. Or as I could quite bluntly put it: Mission Stalk Inuyasha Tonight.

As the dreary history class room slowed, drifted, and faded, the theme music of Pink Panther started to fill the air. I saw myself in a trench coat and imnotsurewhatitscalled hat, studying Inuyasha's footprints with a giant magnifying glass and dodging behind conveniently placed brick walls, only eyes visible underneath the sketchy high collar and low brim of my hat, one eyebrow quirked when Inuyasha spun around suspiciously. Then, breath bated, I would watch as he… what? Grew wings? Began to give the empty street a monologue about his deeply mysterious life? I was jolted back to reality by the sword-sharp voice of Master Hajime.

"Well, Higurashi? What do _you_ think was the Persians' strategy at the cataclysmic battle of Marathon?"

"Uh, well I uh…"

I looked desperately around the room for help and was met only with sniggers and pointed looks. Ino and a girl called Kagura especially were cracking up. For what seemed like the gazillienth time, I turned into an overripe tomato. I looked pleadingly up at Master Hajime and he looked down coldly and scornfully at me with eyes as deep and black as the barrel of a gun. I felt like bursting into tears.

"Higurashi, since you obviously consider yourself above your peers and your lessons I am rather sadisticly pleased to inform you that you will be staying after school until 9 today to dust my truly extensive collection of students heads I was forced to take and the bloody swords with which I took them. Class dismissed."

"B-b-b-but…", I choked. _Staying at school 'till 9??? _This must be against the law!!! There went my awesome plan! Now what was I supposed to do? And some friends I had... Not even trying to help me out, just abandoning me in this mess while they sniggered over their shoulders and went to watch freakin' High School Musical… And also…Master Hajime couldn't be possibly be serious about the heads… could he?

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

School was a lot harder to bear, when all I wanted was to run free and unfettered in the wilderness. It had been terrible at first, when I had just started. Bu t I had gotten used to it. It was just a necessary part of life here, like having parents and reasons an dates and locations and knowledge and knowing your age. I looked 15, and so as so I had to go to school or big sketchy men in beg sketchy blue coats would wrench me out of my little hidey hole and dump me, confused and scared, in a grimy porridge-perfumed orphanage, like when I was new. So I had had to move around quite a bit, restarting school as just an average 7th grader(albeit a huge one) and ending a rather small senior. Each school I went to surviving, fitting in, and eventually even being popular became easier and easier. This was my 7th school to date and the going was pretty good. I already knew everything there was to know. But now the tiny surge of power had turned me wild again. It became a sort of torture to sit on my butt in a stuffy classroom listening to a stuffy teacher drone on and on about something I had learned ages ago. I got in trouble in martial Arts for breaking Naruto's nose. Well, I needed to let out my frustration somehow! Besides, the kid didn't even care. He has _crazy_ healing powers- his nose is already fine! If that kid had lived in my home world he would totally have been… well, something.

And another thing that really claws my guts- that girl. I keep see her watching me, and the set of her lips is so similar to the way Kikyo had used to look at me that it made me want to rip the flimsy plastic desk entrapping me to smithereens. It actually gets REALLY disturbing how whenever I glance at her, I see her looking at me out of the corner of her eye. She seems to keep popping up wherever I go. And watching me….

Well, I think I've sufficiently freaked myself out….

On the way out the back door, (a jealously guarded secret of mine- I discovered it in 7th grade when I had ripped my pants and needed to disappear), whistling along to Lincoln Park, I was stopped by the sound of furious shouting. I peeked around the corner of the fence- and stopped dead. There stood a shame faced Miroku, bowed head, drooping ears and all, with at least 1 black eye. And before him, in all her wrathful glory stood Sango, widely acclaimed for being the strongest and most explosive girl in the history of Takahashi High. And by the look of her she was very, very, mad.

"What the fudge (rating! ach!) were you doing asking that girl out Miroku???!!! And then what you were doing with that other girl- that was just disgusting!! I've never seen anything so repulsive in my life. You-you sicken me."

Miroku timidly raised his head like a turtle venturing out of its shell.

"Well, y-you know, Sango, it's not like we're going out, so I r-really don't see why you care…"

For a second Sango was speechless. She was quite a comic sight, actually, jaw dropping, face reddening, chest swelling- and was that the glitter of tears in her eyes? But no one in their right mind would ever, ever, laugh. And fortunately, despite my great belief otherwise, the poor playboy was actually sane. He got about 3 paces before Sango caught up to him.

I drew back beneath the fence and squeezed my eyes shut in sympathy. The thunderous blows and cries of pain made me very glad I was hidden. And then there was silence, except the fading sounds of Miroku's hurried steps echoing in the empty courtyard… and the ragged sobs of a certain broken-hearted girl. I drew back into the shadows of the schoolyard and made myself disappear.

Something's been puzzling me. If people (oh so kindly, don't get me wrong, I love them for it) are favoriting my story, then why oh why don't they just press that little button down there that says "review"? It's not too hard and it'll make my, like, week… Besides, I'll give you some real naruto my daddy makes!! It's really good! And no, I'm not actually Japanese- it's just my whole family wants to be… My dad had the naruto at Peking Palace and invented his own recipe and I think it's delicious…Oh, no I'm rambling… well, anyhoo, pleaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaase review! I'll try to update soon!


	3. Chapter 3

Meep! I have been frightened into speeding up Kags' and Inu-chan's getting together, so here goes…. Just letting you all know that I'm pretty much making this up as I go…

**Puppies are Cute**

Already the brief high the Shikon shard had given me had worn off. The slight extra bit of power had become usual; the two shards had melded into one indistinguishable but glittery purple splinter that looked no bigger than before, and I was in a bad mood. Have I ever told you how much I detest Naraku?

"Hey Inuyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaasha!" Naraku had whispered creepily, hunching up his black-clad shoulders and glancing towards me conspiratorially.

"What?!" I had snapped, already annoyed because Master Kakashi had whacked me on the head one to many times for breaking Hojo's toe.(Freakin' pansy started bawling like a baby).

"Looooook what I have here! Aren't you jealous? Aren't you jealous?"

"Naraku… that's a rubber-ducky patterned marble. Get over yourself. Now, if you'll pardon me, I have better things to do."

"Did you… did you just insult Haku-doshi-chan…?!" Naraku had croaked, face turning bone white, eyes reddening.

"It has a name?" I had sneered, and, making the biggest mistake of the day so far, turned my back and stalked away. The next thing I knew, Naraku had jumped in front of me with his creepy baboon skills and punched me right in the face. And now here I am, wrapped up like some ridiculous mummy in a cheesy horror film, bored out of my life. Well, at least I'm missing Geometry…

Tik-tok-tik-tok-tik-tok……

3 freakin' hours later….

I rolled over again on the paisley sofa that was the school's "cradle of rejuvenation" and sighed dismally. Screw that. I would've preferred even Geometry with beastly Mr. Guy to this incredible boredom. Serves me right for letting my guard down around that freaking psychopath and his marble collection. Takahashi High was so pathetically tiny it didn't even have a nurse. I was just supposed to wait here in this stupid deserted room until school was over. Something about not allowing kids to leave school unsupervised before the end of school. I was just about to give another particularly dramatic sigh to the empty room when I heard a set of footsteps outside. My heart leaped. Civilization! Humanity! My endless ostracism was over, my loneliness ended? Who could it be? Probably Mrs. Garcias come to say that school was over. Or Kenshin to come "Make me feel better" with one of his overly sunshiny smiles. Even Naraku, come to gloat over my damaged face, would be an improvement. However, the quick, light footsteps belonged to none of these. I recognized the battered and bruised girl immediately. She stalked in the door, grumbling darkly, and was halfway through the room before she even noticed me. She gave a violent start, slipped on the carpet's edge, and fell with a heavy thud. I winced.

"Uh… do you need a hand, Kagome?"

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

My day had started out pretty good, actually. I got a B on my History test. Mrs. Lorax had complimented me on my poem- violets in the dark. For those smart people who know what I'm alluding to, kudos, for those who don't- Inuyasha's hair and eyes….??? Yeah, that was sweet. I actually understood the geometry lesson for once, though the disappearance of a certain black-haired god troubled me. Sango seemed a little off, though. She was much quieter than usual, and there were big black bags under her eyes, like she hadn't slept all night. I didn't ask her about it though, and she seemed to get a hold of herself pretty quickly. All in all, it had been a surprisingly okay day- until I met that witch Ino and her friend Kagura. That was when things got ugly.

"Hey, tomato-girl, 'sup?"

"Guess what Higurashi? We're having a party on Saturday and you're NOT invited. Oh, and everyone else in the grade is. We're gonna go to my dad's 5th mansion in Hong Kong on my private jet."

"Well, too bad for you. Maybe if you weren't so fat and clumsy, we'd invite you too…"  
"Oh, did you hear Inuyasha got beat up? Poor cutie. Don't you just wanna kiss him whenever you see his adorable little face?"

"Yeah, and squeeze him to death, and make him go to the ball with me…"

"He's just soo hot… I wonder if tomato-girl likes him…. Now that I think of it, she does go bright red whenever she sees him… Too bad for her she's just too fat and ugly and stupid. Me, on the other hand…"

The fight that ensued earned me 3 weeks detention, but it was worth it. The look on Kagura's face when I punched her in the stomach after she threatened to "tell her daddy on me" was priceless. Kagura and Ino both got picked up immediately by their parents' maids. But mom was at work, so I got stuck in the boring old sick room until mom could come. At least, I used to think sick-rooms were boring. But not anymore…

I had barged in the door, oblivious to my incredible good fortune, and for that I hate myself. Tripping in front of Inuyasha…. Oh, god…… But then,

"Uh… do you need a hand, Kagome?"

In that instant I thought my heart would stop. His hand, outstretched towards me, was smooth and slender, perfectly tan, with surprisingly long fingers. His face, a beacon of glowing light and beauty was… blushing?

Without a word, I placed my hand in his and smiled… and he smiled back.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

Her hand was warm and soft as a petal. Hating myself, I drew back quickly. Immediately the soft warmth vanished and I was filled with a curious sense of emptiness. Kagome's eyes never once left my one, filled with a kind of disturbing expression I couldn't quite read. I stepped back several paces and cleared my throat loudly.

"Meep! Uh, hi Inuyasha! I, uh, hear Naraku beat you with a chair?"

I scowled. Stupid girl, believing such stupid rumors. Gossip at Takahashi High was one thing I had never learned to escape.

"He punched me because I laughed at his rubber ducky marble," I spat. "And what are you doing here?"

"Well, uh, I kinda got in a fight with Ino and Kagura…" she seemed hurt by his tone. Well, he would prove to himself that he couldn't care less!

"That's pretty pathetic. Weren't you fighting with that Ino witch the first time I met you?"

"Hey, it's not my fault she's so evil and twisted and vicious and snakelike and retarded and- well, anyhow, I think it's really jerky of you to say that to me. How did you manage to get hit by that nuthead Naraku anyhow? And everyone says you're _good_ at martial arts. _You're_ the pathetic one."

"Hey you dastardly little pumpkinhead do you know who you're talking to? I'm the 3-time winner of the Mephisopheles Martial Arts Award. I could take that big wimp Naraku anytime! He got me from behind!"

"Oh, I see, is that you're excuse you lily-livered turnip?" By now we were quite close to each others' faces.

"You want me to prove it, you scilly-scally flibbitagibbet*?"

"Oh, so you'd hit a girl?"

"Try me!"

"What on earth is going on here?"

We froze- I, one fist raised threateningly and her, finger stabbing angrily at my face, and turned slowly to face the door. There stood Mrs. Garcias, framed threateningly by the sick room door in all her wrathful Scottish glory*, flaming hair bristling, arms crossed across her ample stomach, freckled face burning like an unfortunate marshmallow.

"I leave for one- well, maybe a little more than that- seconds, and here you two are, getting in fights again! This is disgraceful! I expected much more from you!"

"B-b-b-b-but Mrs. Garcias…"

"Don't you 'but' me, young man! And you too, young lady-shut your mouth or the flies will buzz in. Not another word from either of you. Leave immediately. School is over. And if I hear another word about either of you getting into a fight again…"

She left the threat hanging dangerously in the air. I swallowed, and looked around for Kagome, but she was already gone.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

I stomped down the corridor, face smoldering, hands on my hips.

"What a jerk! What an incredibly jerkish jerk! I can't believe I actually liked him! Wait- did I just say that out loud?"

I whipped around. The hallway was empty except for a random tumbleweed blowing past the rows of lockers. I sighed in relief. Then a thought occurred to me.

"Wait… School is over, my friends aren't here, I know Inuyasha's approximate location… This is a perfect time to stalk him!"

I skipped merrily off, Pink Panther theme music blaring in my head, already forgetting my enmity with the gorgeous purple-eyed junior. At last, some excitement!

I found him walking slowly, hands deep in pockets, past the home ec room. He appeared deep in thought, iPod jammed in ears, midnight hair tousled across his flawless face. I slipped behind a random pillar and watched him.

-an hour later-

It was hard to admit this to myself, but perhaps following Inuyasha hadn't been such a great idea after all. I had boarded two buses, each time having to go to the wildest extremes as so not to show him my face, walked at least 10 miles, and ran about 3. And all the while, the sun was slipping lower and lower in the azure sky. I hadn't even gotten my backpack before starting on this wild goose chase! And my mom must be really, really worried by now. I was about to give up and turn back when a shout shocked me back into reality.

"Hey you! Yeah you with the red sweatshirt! Hands up!"

"What the hell?? Who are you?"

" Did you not just hear what the boss said? Hands up you little rat! Hand over all your money!"

"And how am I supposed to do that with my hands in the air?"

There was a ringing blow. Franticly, I hid myself behind a graffiti-covered building and peeked cautiously out.

I was in a shadowy, garbage- strewn street. It had slipped my notice that as the sun went down and my weary feet carried me ever onward, the houses and streets around me had deteriorated, grown more and more slumm-y, more trash and graffiti covered, shutters drooping and music pounding violently from dirty windows. However, there was no sound in this filthy street to which I had come but the yells and thuds and grunts of fighting. Inuyasha was doing incredibly well- almost impossibly well- how could such slender arms possibly hold such strength?- but there were just too many of them. Even medal-winning demons have their limits. There was a final, solid _thock_, and the laughter of the goons faded into the dusky twilight. Inuyasha sat alone in the abandoned street with his knees drawn up to his chest, for what seemed like forever. It took me a long while to notice that he was crying.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

I just couldn't stop myself. The tears poured traitorously out of my eyes, burning my eyes like acid, tears of fury. Despite the slight addition of power from the shard, I was still just so weak! It was terrible!

"Why do I have to be so…so pathetic, so weak! This human body… so slow, so fragile… Everything hurts so much in this terrible world! Why?! Oh why did I come here?! Shikon shard, please, send my back! To my world, to my life, to my strength! Oh please, why, why won't you send me home???"

And with that I just kind of broke. I was so stupid! I had had the gall to go through that shining door and now I was trapped here, with no way back. I wanted to go home, even if it meant Kikyo… To think of me, the Inuyasha, being beaten by a bunch of scrawny humans… the very thought of it made me feel sick and beaten inside. Then suddenly came a sound that made my very soul freeze.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

It wasn't my fault- I didn't mean to! But when I heard those words, proof that my far-fetched fantasy was real, that there was a real live angel crying on the ground not 10 feet from me, my legs just sort of gave out. My heart gave a violent start and then seemed to stop beating. All the color drained from my face as Inuyasha, amethyst eyes terrible and yet wet with tears, came walking around the corner towards me. What was I going to do? What should I say? Would he… kill me? At that moment my mind just seemed to shut down. The words that slipped dumbly from my quivering, traitorous lips were going to be my last, of that I was sure. How could I be so stupid?

"W-w-w-will you… go to the ball with me?"

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

For a second I couldn't believe my ears. They had always worked perfectly fine for me in the past, but there does come a breaking point, I guess.

"You-me- w-w-w-w-what?!!"

All my anger and pain had vanished as if swept by a sharp gust of wind, replaced by unbelievable shock. Dumbstruck, I watched her face redden slowly until she looked like she'd gone sunbathing in Death Valley. She clamped a hand over her mouth and I could swear she looked like she was going to cry.

"W-w-w-well I mean I was just thinking maybe you might wanna- wanna go with me?"

"A, There is no ball, I don't have a clue what you're talking about, and B, you stalked me all the way out here just to ask me something stupid like that?"

Kagome hung her head. I saw the tears dripping from her cheeks onto the filthy pavement, and in an instant I was by her side. I had placed a soothing hand around her waist before I even knew what I was doing. I tilted her face up to look at me- and froze.

What was this warm, somehow familiar feeling welling up inside me again? Her eyes, huge and wet and beautiful looked pleadingly into my own.

"P-please, Inuyasha" she whispered softly, her voice small and broken. Our faces were so close together I could smell her. She smelled sweet and young and fresh, like quiet pink roses drenched in morning dew, like a butterfly in the sunlight, like honey… For some reason I couldn't stop looking at her lips, beautiful and rose-colored, like all the rest of her… Our faces hovered closer and closer together, and then-

"Hey! Look at this! The little brat has a girlfriend!"

"Hahahaha!!! I wonder if she's got any money- or something else…"

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go see!"

We jerked apart. I felt a numbing hollowness in my chest at the loss of contact, but that was quickly replaced with rage, hot and bitter as acid. Kagome looked away, biting her lip, eyebrows knotted, huge eyes trembling with tears anew. Her shaking fists were clenched at her sides. I don't think any of us, me or the goons, could ever have foreseen what happened next.

"You jerks! How dare you ruin my first kiss?! I'll get you for that!! ROOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAARRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!"

And before I could stop her, she was off like a rocket. How could such a slender, fragile looking girl move so fast?! It made my eyes blurry just to look at her. Her face blazed with wrath, and for a second I even felt sorry for the goons. With a smash, her tiny fist collided with the face of the leader. He went down like a ton of bricks. Next she whirled around like a demon and kicked a second in the stomach. He hit the ground. Then she jumped high in the air, long smooth legs glowing in the setting sun beneath her swirling turquoise skirt, and plugged a third goon in the nose. Without a second glance, the rest of the gang ran of as fast as their legs could carry them, screaming like little girls. I had to bite my lip to hold in my laughter. Kagome stood, shoulders heaving, with her back to me, perfect figure illuminated by the last of the sun. Timidly, I walked up to her, afraid now of her terrible destroying power.

"K-Kagome? Are you okay?" I asked, putting a gentle hand on her shoulder. In an instant she had spun around, beaming, and was hugging me with all her might, laughing her head off. My eyes wider than dinner plates, I blinked, and blinked again. I think my brain was starting to reach its limit.

"**Inuyashaaaaaaaaa!!!!! Did you see what I did??? Did you see what I did to them??? The retards! They got pwwwwwwwned!!!! They should know never to mess with a girl!!! Ha!! Did you see them run???"** And with that, she burst into a ringing explosion of laughter. I hesitated, bewildered, and then allowed a smile to grace my lips. Tightening my grip around her, I started to laugh too, my first true laugh since… since, well, Kikyo. I just couldn't stop laughing. As the sun set, I leaned down and buried my face in her shining hair, my eyes filling for the second time that day with tears- but this time, tears of laughter. And I was happy.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

He walked me home, even though the sun had already set and the cool autumn sky was already starting to fill with stars, like scattered diamonds some god of love had sprinkled up there, just to light our way. He took me as far as the bus stop, and then turned away with a smile on his face. I can still see that smile when I close my eyes- quiet, radiant, glowing, and so… real… like it came from the bottom of his soul. He had walked away, figure soon blurring into the shadows of the night, and I would have missed my bus for staring at him if a nice boy who called himself Hojo hadn't grabbed my shoulder and pulled me on. Dimly I recall him talking excitedly to me, face alight, asking if I remembered him, smile fading as I ignored him, room enough in my mind for only one person in the whole wide world- Inuyasha. Such an intriguing, beautiful name, the way it slipped of your tongue, a whisper of wind through bamboo leaves, a handsome wanderer disappearing into a dark night. My whole soul seemed filled to bursting with love for him, so mysterious and yet so real, like a balloon that kept growing and growing, filling my whole being with warmth. We had almost kissed! We would have kissed, if it hadn't been for those stupid, stupid goons… I had sure let them have it. At last the training Sango had hammered into me had come in handy. The looks on their faces, which would have once been my happiest solace in my darkest hours, were immediately shoved out by the impatient, slender hands of Inuyasha, so strong, so perfect… His eyes had somehow seemed different when I looked into them- the pupil longer, the glowing amethyst even more exquisite… I almost missed my stop. The Hojo boy slouched out with a final mournful look in my direction, but I didn't care. My lips curved up in a smile that I was sure would last me forever. Inuyasha……….

Thanks to hispanicinuyashalover, amiegirl, Jazzy my homey- THE SCARECROW WILL GET YOU, and Ajaxtheaxemurderer I KNOW WHERE YOU LIVE for reviewing. I have finally kinda gotten to the kissy part, so I better get some reviews…….. Pweeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaseeeeee……………..reviewreviewreviewreviewreview………………….

Well heloooooo peoples! I watched Titanic last night and cried, so disregard any tear-stains on this… *sniffs dramatically* I LOVE LEONARDO DICAPRIO!!!! Please read!

**Puppies are Cute**

**Chapter 11**

The second she was gone, I spun around and started to run as fast as I could, which was pretty fast. There was no mistaking what I felt this time. It was the aura of Shikon shards. And not just one this time- many more. My pulse quickened as I raced through the dark abandoned streets. How on earth did this keep happening? The jewel had been shattered and the pieces scattered in the other world, I knew that for certain. The portal had been closed for fifty years. And yet somehow the shards kept popping up everywhere I went. How was that possible? I just didn't get it… I remembered the day, so long ago I couldn't count the years, when my mother had given the jewel into my keeping. As the wind whistled past me, speeding legs bringing me ever closer to another mystery, I recalled the past…

_I looked up at my mother with huge trembling golden eyes, puppy ears twitching, tears coursing past the scrapes and livid bruises slowly fading on my plump cheeks. I must have been about 5 in human years. My mother knelt down gracefully on one knee and stroked my long silvery hair with a pale, slender hand, tear-streaked face inches from mine. In her other hand she held the jewel, shimmering gently in the candle light. Her golden and white kimono fell gently around her wasted frame. Even in her last moments she was beautiful._

"_Inuyasha…" she whispered, her once vibrant voice sounding like the merest whispering of wind in dead leaves, as if it took her a great effort just to make out the words. "My darling, you are so precious to me. You know that right?"_

_I forced myself to nod my head, glistening tears making shining tracks on my small pale face. _

"_Inuyasha, I… want you to have this. It will become your heart and your power. Guard it with everything you have, for… for it will be your very soul. Never give it to someone unless… Unless you truly love them,… trust them with your heart… Your father… he… he gave this to me, and I have protected it… always. It is called the Shikon Jewel. Please, my love, take it. You know I will always… Always love you…"_

_And with that she fell into my arms, lifeless, long raven hair spilling like water over the dirty ground of the deserted hut in the forest, skin white as the snow that fell from the sky onto the roof of the rough shelter, muffling the heart-broken cries of a baby hanyou as he curled a tiny fist around the jewel that was to be his new heart._

With a blink, I shook my head, sniffed, and skidded to a halt. It wasn't good to bring back old memories, I knew that. What had gotten into me? The powerful aura brought me back to reality. I was in the middle of an empty, moonlit square, surrounded by collapsing houses on all sides. And before me…

My breath caught in my throat as I slowly raised my eyes. Towering above me was the largest tree I had ever seen. It's massive, gnarled brown base, which would have taken at least 20 humans with outstretched arms to span it, was hung with a strange rope, grown into the tree in many places, around which hung 5 huge wing-chime looking objects, each bigger than the last. It soared so far up into the star-sprinkled sky that I couldn't see where it ended. There was no mistake. The aura of the shikon shards was coming from inside it.

I cocked my head to one side and stared up at it, puzzling. It seemed to stare back down at me, like some giant wild beast frozen forever in place among dwarves by some malignant demon. How was I supposed to get the shikon shards? I didn't want to have to cut such a huge tree down- it would take forever, if it fell it would crush all the houses around it, and besides… it seemed sacrilege to touch such a lofty, ancient giant. A gust of wind swept my hair back, carrying trash and fallen scarlet leaves in a tiny tornado, and I heard a strange noise that seemed to make the very ground vibrate, like the sound when you blow across the top of a bottle, only an incredibly immense one. Then it clicked in my head. Of course! The tree was hollow!

With a huge leap, I cleared about 15 feet and reached the first branch. It sagged alarmingly under my weight. Aaagh! I wasn't gaining weight, was I? It must have been all that ramen… Before you could say, "Shishkabob!" I was on the next branch, which was quite a bit sturdier than the last, and then on to the next. I must have looked quite a sight to any curious passerby- a boy with a red backpack jumping like a giant overfed squirrel from branch to branch of an enormous tree that seemed to look on in derisive amusement! It took quite a while, but at last I had reached the uppermost branch and was standing, shoulders heaving, looking in amazement at the twinkling lights of the city spread out below me in an intricate, teeming web of life. Tiny multicolored lights shone bravely against the overpowering darkness which swept up to the towering mountains soaring darkly far in the distance, like the foreboding body of a sleeping dragon enfolding this tiny stronghold of humanity, ready at any moment to wake up and snuff out the lights without a second thought. I shivered. This world might not have been my home, but I had grown used to it, even _attached_ to it over the years. I sighed, and turned to the yawning hole in the tree below me. I had a new problem now- how was I supposed to get down there without breaking my neck? Besides, it was rather… creepy looking. How was I gonna see down there, anyhow? I shook myself. I couldn't possibly turn back now! Especially after that climb… I would get what I came for. Besides, if there was… _something_ down there, surely I would have felt it, wouldn't I? Pushing away my fears, I crawled down into the hole and vanished into the darkness.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

"Kagomeeeeeeeee!!!!! Time to get up darling!!!"

I glanced at the clock. 5:30 AM to the dot. But somehow, instead of an evil scowl spreading across my sleep-heavy face, a jaw-cracking grin turned up my lips. I would get to see Inuyasha again today!!

"Coming, dearest mother!" I sang, bouncing out of my bed in my footsie barnie pajamas and skipping over to the bathroom. Downstairs 3 jaws dropped into their cereal.

Humming, I brushed my shining black hair back and paused. How should I wear it today? Up, in a high ponytail? Or down, so it could cascade over my shoulders and maybe catch Inuyasha's attention? Down, I decided. I added a little daisy pin just to spruce things up a bit. I splashed cold water on my face, brushed my teeth with mint toothpaste very, _very_ thoroughly, and bounced back into my bedroom for the most important part of my morning ritual- choosing my clothes.

I think I've forgotten to tell you about my bedroom. This is what it looked like: Sunshine yellow walls with pink and orange polka dots, (just seeing them made me feel warm and fuzzy inside), a gigantic blue and pink striped-covered bed, a chest of drawers, a gigantic collection of stuffed animals (mainly adorable little white puppies) some pictures of my old friends, a desk, a book shelf, and a laptop. All of this was crammed into such a small space that the effect was rather overwhelming for anyone but me.

Anyhow, clothes. I was torn between a daisy-patterned long-sleeved shirt to match my hair clip with a bright-yellow pleated mini skirt with white woolen leg warmers, and a long dark-green sweater and a lacy black skirt and green tights. (Hey, it was really getting cold out!) I chose the daisies. Next I sprayed some Morning Rose TM perfume on myself, put on lip gloss and a light coat of sky- blue eyeliner to match my eyes, and was ready to go. And it was still only 5:45! I checked my plan book. Yep, there was an honor society meeting today. Time to put my plan into action!

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

I rolled over in bed, mumbling. The 7 shards, now joined seamlessly into one rather bigger whole, clinked and glittered around my neck. Tossing and turning in the cruel sunshine, I recalled last night:

_I crawled down into the tree, holding fast with my fingers to the bumpy surface of the tree, searching with my conver-ed feet for ledges. It was like extreme mountain climbing, except in the pitch-dark. The circle of stars above me shrunk by degrees. Several times I stumbled, and was sure I was going to fall into the gaping maw of darkness below me, and that would be it. My puny barely-more-than human body would shatter like a pane of glass. For the 5__th__ time I cursed my decision to bring the backpack with me. The heavy textbooks seemed to drag me down. School really_ would_ kill me!_

_However, I survived the descent. At last I reached the bottom. I saw a purple glow on the other side of the massive hollow and walked over to it. _

_There were the Shikon shards, 5 of them in all. They lay, quietly sparkling, on an altar shaped like a lotus petal. For a second I just stood there, and it seemed to me I could feel the tree breathing around me. Then I reached forward with a tentative hand… and scooped up the shards._

_All at once I felt a bittersweet burning inside me. The power reared its head within me, surging through my veins like fire. I writhed back and forth as my body began to transform. Outwardly it was just my claws and fangs growing, pupils lengthening and irises starting to yellow, hair lightening up a couple degrees. But on the inside…The power was so heady, so addicting that I almost didn't notice as the towering tree crumbled around me, turning into dust, which was quickly swept away like ashes in the wind. Eyes finally focusing, I lifted my head._

_The square was empty. I stood alone in a rough square of dirty moonlight, empty houses unchanged, windows staring like hollow eyes. It was like the tree had never been there. Most probably, I realized, it never was. I stood there a moment longer as the wind swirled trash around me, and then turned my back on the courtyard and flew home. The moon shone above me like a pale coin someone had lost up there in the sea of star-studded clouds, looking down coldly at a _very_ strange world. _

I hoped that was exciting for you people, cause I just made it up as I went along! Thanks to


	4. Chapter 4

Well heloooooo peoples! I watched Titanic last night and cried, so disregard any tear-stains on this… *sniffs dramatically* I LOVE LEONARDO DICAPRIO!!!! Please read!

Oh, and to my wonderful old readers- I am so, so sorry about deleting the previous chapters and then changing them- please don't kill me! I have an explanation!

You see, first I accidentally deleted all the chapters because I thought I was on the document uploader, not the actual story. And then I reread my story and got really annoyed at how short the chapters were, so I decided to clump them all together. And then I was almost halfway done when I had SCIENCE FAIR and went to Disney World, and then I was just depressed in general because I didn't do so great. And now I finally have the time and the effort. So sorry! {

Oh, and I don't own any of the characters except some of the teachers. And Kaoru and Kenshin are from Rurouni Kenshin, they're not mine either. (waaah)(

**Chapter 4**

The second she was gone, I spun around and started to run as fast as I could, which was pretty fast. There was no mistaking what I felt this time. It was the aura of Shikon shards. And not just one this time- many more. My pulse quickened as I raced through the dark abandoned streets. How on earth did this keep happening? The jewel had been shattered and the pieces scattered in the other world, I knew that for certain. The portal had been closed for fifty years. And yet somehow the shards kept popping up everywhere I went. How was that possible? I just didn't get it… I remembered the day, so long ago I couldn't count the years, when my mother had given the jewel into my keeping. As the wind whistled past me, speeding legs bringing me ever closer to another mystery, I recalled the past…

_I looked up at my mother with huge trembling golden eyes, puppy ears twitching, tears coursing past the scrapes and livid bruises slowly fading on my plump cheeks. I must have been about 5 in human years. My mother knelt down gracefully on one knee and stroked my long silvery hair with a pale, slender hand, tear-streaked face inches from mine. In her other hand she held the jewel, shimmering gently in the candle light. Her golden and white kimono fell gently around her wasted frame. Even in her last moments she was beautiful._

"_Inuyasha…" she whispered, her once vibrant voice sounding like the merest whispering of wind in dead leaves, as if it took her a great effort just to make out the words. "My darling, you are so precious to me. You know that right?"_

_I forced myself to nod my head, glistening tears making shining tracks on my small pale face. _

"_Inuyasha, I… want you to have this. It will become your heart and your power. Guard it with everything you have, for… for it will be your very soul. Never give it to someone unless… Unless you truly love them,… trust them with your heart… Your father… he… he gave this to me, and I have protected it… always. It is called the Shikon Jewel. Please, my love, take it. You know I will always… Always love you…"_

_And with that she fell into my arms, lifeless, long raven hair spilling like water over the dirty ground of the deserted hut in the forest, skin white as the snow that fell from the sky onto the roof of the rough shelter, muffling the heart-broken cries of a baby hanyou as he curled a tiny fist around the jewel that was to be his new heart._

With a blink, I shook my head, sniffed, and skidded to a halt. It wasn't good to bring back old memories, I knew that. What had gotten into me? The powerful aura brought me back to reality. I was in the middle of an empty, moonlit square, surrounded by collapsing houses on all sides. And before me…

My breath caught in my throat as I slowly raised my eyes. Towering above me was the largest tree I had ever seen. It's massive, gnarled brown base, which would have taken at least 20 humans with outstretched arms to span it, was hung with a strange rope, grown into the tree in many places, around which hung 5 huge wing-chime looking objects, each bigger than the last. It soared so far up into the star-sprinkled sky that I couldn't see where it ended. There was no mistake. The aura of the shikon shards was coming from inside it.

I cocked my head to one side and stared up at it, puzzling. It seemed to stare back down at me, like some giant wild beast frozen forever in place among dwarves by some malignant demon. How was I supposed to get the shikon shards? I didn't want to have to cut such a huge tree down- it would take forever, if it fell it would crush all the houses around it, and besides… it seemed sacrilege to touch such a lofty, ancient giant. A gust of wind swept my hair back, carrying trash and fallen scarlet leaves in a tiny tornado, and I heard a strange noise that seemed to make the very ground vibrate, like the sound when you blow across the top of a bottle, only an incredibly immense one. Then it clicked in my head. Of course! The tree was hollow!

With a huge leap, I cleared about 15 feet and reached the first branch. It sagged alarmingly under my weight. Aaagh! I wasn't gaining weight, was I? It must have been all that ramen… Before you could say, "Shishkabob!" I was on the next branch, which was quite a bit sturdier than the last, and then on to the next. I must have looked quite a sight to any curious passerby- a boy with a red backpack jumping like a giant overfed squirrel from branch to branch of an enormous tree that seemed to look on in derisive amusement! It took quite a while, but at last I had reached the uppermost branch and was standing, shoulders heaving, looking in amazement at the twinkling lights of the city spread out below me in an intricate, teeming web of life. Tiny multicolored lights shone bravely against the overpowering darkness which swept up to the towering mountains soaring darkly far in the distance. They looked like the foreboding body of a sleeping dragon enfolding the tiny stronghold of humanity, ready at any moment to wake up and snuff out the lights without a second thought. I shivered. This world might not have been my home, but I had grown used to it, even _attached_ to it over the years. I sighed, and turned to the yawning hole in the tree below me. I had a new problem now- how was I supposed to get down there without breaking my neck? Besides, it was rather… creepy looking. How was I gonna see down there, anyhow? I shook myself. I couldn't possibly turn back now! Especially after that climb… I would get what I came for. Besides, if there was… _something_ down there, surely I would have felt it, wouldn't I? Pushing away my fears, I crawled down into the hole and vanished into the darkness.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

"Kagomeeeeeeeee!!!!! Time to get up darling!!!"

I glanced at the clock. 5:30 AM to the dot. But somehow, instead of an evil scowl spreading across my sleep-heavy face, a jaw-cracking grin turned up my lips. I would get to see Inuyasha again today!!

"Coming, dearest mother!" I sang, bouncing out of my bed in my footsie barnie pajamas and skipping over to the bathroom. Downstairs 3 jaws dropped into their cereal.

Humming, I brushed my shining black hair back and paused. How should I wear it today? Up, in a high ponytail? Or down, so it could cascade over my shoulders and maybe catch Inuyasha's attention? Down, I decided. I added a little daisy pin just to spruce things up a bit. I splashed cold water on my face, brushed my teeth with mint toothpaste very, _very_ thoroughly, and bounced back into my bedroom for the most important part of my morning ritual- choosing my clothes.

I think I've forgotten to tell you about my bedroom. This is what it looked like: Sunshine yellow walls with pink and orange polka dots, (just seeing them made me feel warm and fuzzy inside), a gigantic blue and pink striped-covered bed, a chest of drawers, a gigantic collection of stuffed animals (mainly adorable little white puppies) some pictures of my old friends, a desk, a book shelf, and a laptop. All of this was crammed into such a small space that the effect was rather overwhelming for anyone but me.

Anyhow, clothes. I was torn between a daisy-patterned long-sleeved shirt to match my hair clip with a bright-yellow pleated mini skirt with white woolen leg warmers, and a long dark-green sweater and a lacy black skirt and green tights. (Hey, it was really getting cold out!) I chose the daisies. Next I sprayed some Morning Rose TM perfume on myself, put on lip gloss and a light coat of sky- blue eyeliner to match my eyes, and was ready to go. And it was still only 5:45! I checked my plan book. Yep, there was an honor society meeting today. Time to put my plan into action!

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

I rolled over in bed, mumbling. The 7 shards, now joined seamlessly into one rather bigger whole, clinked and glittered around my neck. Tossing and turning in the cruel sunshine, I recalled last night:

_I crawled down into the tree, holding fast with my fingers to the bumpy surface of the tree, searching with my conver-ed feet for ledges. It was like extreme mountain climbing, except in the pitch-dark. The circle of stars above me shrunk by degrees. Several times I stumbled, and was sure I was going to fall into the gaping maw of darkness below me, and that would be it. My puny barely-more-than human body would shatter like a pane of glass. For the 50__th__ time I cursed my decision to bring the backpack with me. The heavy textbooks seemed to drag me down. School really_ would_ kill me!_

_However, I survived the descent. At last I reached the bottom. I saw a purple glow on the other side of the massive hollow and walked over to it. _

_There were the Shikon shards, 5 of them in all. They lay, quietly sparkling, on an altar shaped like a lotus petal. For a second I just stood there, and it seemed to me I could feel the tree breathing around me. Then I reached forward with a tentative hand… and scooped up the shards._

_All at once I felt a bittersweet burning inside me. The power reared its head within me, surging through my veins like fire. I writhed back and forth as my body began to transform. Outwardly it was just my claws and fangs growing, pupils lengthening and irises starting to yellow, hair lightening up a couple degrees. But on the inside…The power was so heady, so addicting that I almost didn't notice as the towering tree crumbled around me, turning into dust, which was quickly swept away like ashes in the wind. Eyes finally focusing, I lifted my head._

_The square was empty. I stood alone in a rough square of dirty moonlight, empty houses unchanged, windows staring like hollow eyes. It was like the tree had never been there. Most probably, I realized, it never was. I stood there a moment longer as the wind swirled trash around me, and then turned my back on the courtyard and flew home. The moon shone above me like a pale coin someone had lost up there in the sea of star-studded clouds, looking down coldly at a _very_ strange world. _

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

I raked my hands through my once- shining hair, and glanced around the almost full, yet to me, empty, classroom. Sango sat next to me, pretending to concentrate on Mr. Viv, while actually staring a hole in the back of a certain pervert sitting obliviously in front of her. On my other side sat Kaoru, trying her hardest, which is pretty hard, to distract the stalwart Kenshin from his faithful studies. Hojo, the nice boy from the train, kept darting glances at me from beneath lowered lids. And yet the classroom still felt so empty… It was halfway through 3rd period, and still Inuyasha wasn't here. Had the gang attacked him again on his way home alone through the dark, dangerous streets? Was he at this very moment lying cold on the ground, violet eyes glassy and empty, cascading raven hair matted with scarlet blood? The very thought of it made me want to cry, to run, to tear at my hair and scream. I forced myself to calm down. It wasn't healthy to let one person have so much influence over me! And yet, somehow, I didn't care. At the moment the only thing I wanted was to see him, just once more, to know that he was okay, somewhere, even if that somewhere was another world. I forced my breathing to slow and chewed my nails the rest of the class.

Next came the Honor Society meeting, instead of lunch. I had always had pretty good grades, As and Bs mostly, so I was lucky enough to be able to join in the small group of decision-makers of the school. Inuyasha, Hojo, Sango, Yuki, Kagura, and a bunch of other kids made up the rest. I had a very important idea (to me) I really wanted the group to buy, so by the time we had all filed into the tiny classroom, my hands were slick with nervousness and my breath once again hitching in my throat. If I got what I wanted, I might be able to get that kiss with Inuyasha, and get him to ask me out. If not… it would be rather embarrassing if he found out, to say the least. It actually was kinda good he wasn't in school today… I took a deep breath and raised my hand.

"I would like to have a school ball."

…And as usual, I got my way. Well, Inuyasha, here I come!

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

-3 weeks later-

"Hey Miroku! Dude, what the heck is going on?"

I stared in amazement up at the streamers criss-crossing the ceiling, the swollen multi-colored balloons, the vases exploding with flowers… and most of all the girls. They were _definitely_ not acting normal. They skipped around in flocks, giving every guy they saw a sly look over the shoulder, blushing and giggling and whispering… All in all, it had a quite alarming effect on me. I had been "out sick" for the past week (a.k.a. sitting around my house eating potato chips, playing random video games, and going to concerts). Miroku bounced up to me, face alight with excitement.

"Wow, Inuyasha, you're back! What "unfortunate illness" did you have this time?"

"Shut up," I snapped, "And tell me what the frick is going on here??"

There was a deadly silence in the entrance hall. The girls' jaws dropped, as well as Miroku's, and everyone froze. I saw Kenshin roll his eyes, and Naraku snicker, and knew I was in for it. The girls started advancing on me slowly, like zombies from some ancient silent horror movie. The only sound was the ominous click of their high-heeeled boots on the stone floor. My knees started trembling. The girls came closer and closer. I looked desperately around for help, but none came. Then-

"Inuyasha, you retard, how could you have forgotten?"

I felt a strong pull on my arm and suddenly I was being swept through the crowd, down a hallway, and into an empty classroom. I heard the door close with an ill-omened _click_, and felt scared allover again. I looked around to see the face of my savior/captor - and was met with a pair of impossibly enormous, sky-blue eyes. For a second I was speechless.

"K-K-K-K-Kagome??? Uh, watsup?"

Her face brightened even more, if possible, with a sweet, shy smile.

"Um, well, it looked like you were in trouble, so I just kinda had to help you…"

A touch of pink tinged her cheeks and she looked down.

"Uh, thanks! I was really freaked out! Just tell me if there's anything I can do for you in exchange, okay?"

"Really? Do you really mean that?" she breathed. Her rosy face was very close to mine now, and her eyes, despite their beauty, had a somehow... _scheming_ look in them. I backed away.

"Y-yeah, sure. Anyhow, can you please tell me what's going on outside?"

She snapped out of it, cheeks flooding with scarlet.

"Um, yeah. Well, there's gonna be a ball the day after tomorrow, and everyone's really excited… It was my idea, you know," she added, as and afterthought, and then turned even redder.

Meanwhile, everything had clicked in my head.

"Ohhhh… so that's why all the girls were acting weird…" I mused. I noticed that she was inching towards me again, perfect face bashful, long black eyelids lowered.

"So, um, I was, uh, wondering…. You know how you just said you'd do something for me?" she whispered, pausing as if waiting for me to agree, fiddling with the bottom of her shirt. When I just stood there like a wooden statue, she continued, quickly and haltingly: "W-well, I was just wondering if you- if you might want to go with me. I know I asked you before, but, um…"

I stared at her, momentarily speechless, gathering my wits. Had Kagome- had she actually just asked me to the ball? The gangster-bashing, tomato-faced, sky-eyed Kikyo-look-alike??? What was I supposed to do?

As the seconds wore on in utter silence, Kagome's glowing cheeks paled into the icy color Kikyo's had been, her eyebrows knotted unhappily, and she chewed on her lip until I was afraid she would make it bleed. Well, I had promised… She started to stammer something apologetic out, but I, once again without thinking, placed a gentle finger on her scarlet lips. She started.

"Shhhh…" I said. "Of course I'll go with you. A promise is a promise. And besides…" I looked down, my own cheeks flushing. "Well, I'd, uh, really like to go with you to." I looked up uncertainly, and saw her whole face shining with the light of her little shy smile once more. She reached down and grabbed my hand, and we walked, hand in hand, down the teeming corridor, off to History class.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

I stared intently into the mirror as I forced my twitching hands to be still, applying my eyeliner for the 14th time today. It was the day of the ball, and I _had _to look perfect. There was only an hour left before Inuyasha came to pick me up! My carefully curled hair lay in shining, perfumed black waves over my shoulders. I had on soft red eyeshadow, just barely visible, and eyeliner which emphasized my long lashes. There was the faintest touch of blush on my porcelain cheeks. My lips were a deep, not too obtrusive crimson. I had a single blood-red ceramic rose clipped in my hair, looking terribly realistic, I thought, another on a black chain around my neck, and a third, larger one on the black satin sash I had wrapped around my waist. My dress was floaty and scarlet, rather simple, low- cut with the bottom at an angle, with ruffles. All together it looked very pretty, if I dared say so myself. But not perfect enough…

"HEY WATSUP SIS????"

I jumped up with shriek, smudging the eyeliner all across my cheek. Sota stood right behind my, deceptively innocent smile plastered across his annoying little face. I growled deep in my throat.

"Soootaaaaa…."

He wasn't looking so cocky now! He gulped.

"Y-y-y-yes Sis?"

"You poor, sweet darling… I'M GONNA KILL YOU!!!!!!"

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

-At the Ryukotsai apartments complex, Inuyasha wasn't faring so much better-

"So, Yash… who was it you said you were going with again…?"

"Get out, Miroku."  
"Aw, you loser. We've all told you who we're going with. Spit it out."

"You too, Koga. I never invited either of you over here."

"Oooh, does that mean you invited me? Cool!"

"No, I did not invite you either, Kenshin. Go away already, will ya???"

I was in my room, trying to adjust my suit into something slightly comfortable and a little less than totally ridiculous. I had a black coat and pants, rented for 20 dollars from Ryoga's Suit Smart Store (ugh) and a rather baggy scarlet button-up shirt. My hair, now more of a dark gray, another thing my friends saw fit to tease me about, was slicked back and tied with a piece of red leather, into a low ponytail. There was a red rose in my buttonhole. I felt like puking.

Miroku, Koga, and Kenshin had let themselves in and were now seated in a semi-circle around me, each in pretty similar outfits. Except Miroku's shirt was dark blue, Koga's was green and Kenshin's was white. Unless they were lying, Miroku had asked out Sango, Koga Ayame, and Kenshin was, obviously, going with Kaoru. And they just wouldn't stop bugging me!!!

"I didn't know you were old enough to drive, Inuyasha. Do you have license?"

"AAAAAAAARRRRRGGHHHH!! I've been driving the Bananamobile since I was… um…13! When I… moved here! You know that! Now, if you want a ride, shut uppppp!!!!"

That did it. They sat there stupidly with there mouths hanging open like someone had hit them over their heads with a dead chicken. I smirked and swaggered out the door. Time to pick up Kagome!

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

5 minutes left… 4…. I reapplied my makeup as fast as I could, cursing all little brothers violently under my breath. God, was I gonna kill that little brat Sota when I got back! He couldn't hide from me for long!

DINGDONG

I froze. Ahh god he was early! What was I gonna do???? My hands were blurs as I dabbed the last bit of blush on my cheeks, adjusted my hair, sprayed on a little more Rose-of-the-Mist TM perfume, and then sprinted down the stairs and… opened the door.

"Hey, Kagome!"

I could have fainted.

There was Inuyasha, hotter than ever, standing at my very doorstep, a bouquet of crimson roses in his hands, smiling that perfect smile of his. And behind him… it had to be the strangest car I'd ever seen!

It was a brilliant, lurid, yellow, a yellow that dazzled your eyes and made you want to run for a pair of sunglasses, and sunblock while you were at it. It was covered with dents, scrapes, smashes, and rust, and it was huge… At least as long as a stretch limo. Painted sloppily on the front was "The Bananamobile" and an evil smiley face. And sticking out from its windows were the shocked-looking heads of Sango, Ayame, Kaoru, Miroku, Koga, and Kenshin. For a second it was just too much. Then I recovered myself.

"Oh! H-hi Inuyasha! You're, um… you're a bit early…!"

He looked down at his watch, an adorably puzzled look on beautiful face. If he was a puppy, his ears would have been drooping.

"Ohhhh… s-sorry…"

I gave him most brilliant smile, feeling courageous.

"It's fine. C'mon let's go before my cat attacks you."

Giggling at his shocked and rather scared face, I slid my arm through his and led him out the door, slamming it behind me. This was going to be a wonderful night!

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

I let her ride shotgun. She was my date after all. All throughout the Bananamobile there was an awkward silence. This was the first time I had ever been on a current-day, American date, and the silence pressed on my ears. I fidgeted in my worn seat, hands fiddling with the wheel.

"So, um, this your car?"

"Uh, yeah. I've had it for the 2 years I've lived here. Got it at Ranma's Road-Wreck Recovery. She's a good old girl," I said, slapping the dashboard with false heartiness. The radio fell out.

"OOOoops… heh… that happens a lot…"

I reached over her legs and shoved it back in.

"Well, why don't we have some music!" I stammered brightly. "What do you listen to?"

"Ummm… whatever you like…"

"Oh no! You tell me what you like!"

"No, you!"

"You!.... wait.. whatever. This is stupid."

"I-I-I'm so s-s-s-sorry, I don't know what came over me…"  
"It's okay…"

More awkward silence.

"Hey look, a dead cow!"

"Shut up Miroku." We all yelled. And for the rest of the drive… there was silence.

-20 minutes later-

"Oh wow this is so beautiful! C'mon, Inuyasha! Let's dance!"

Kagome dragged me by my hand into the hall, long black hair swaying, face illuminated with an excited smile. I felt a corresponding smile break out on my own face.

"Let's!"

I didn't know how exactly the evening would turn out… but it was looking up. Oh yes... It might turn out to be a perfectly good ball after all.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

"Okay", whispered Fangirl #1 to the crowd of fangirls and Jakotsu behind her. "The coast is clear. Stage 1 of our plan starts… NOW!!" The girls (and solitary boy) slipped into the laughing crowd and vanished.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

"So…" I whispered giddily in Inuyasha's ear as we danced gracefully through the shining ballroom. "This isn't so bad, is it?"

"Actually, no!" he laughed softly. "This is kind of… fun, actually!"

We were in the exact middle of the room. I admired the way our hair flowed together, black and dark gray, and the way his long slender fingers were placed so delicately on my waist. He barely touched me, and yet I could feel every detail of his fingers against my hip. They seemed to be burning, but maybe that was just me. I leaned closer to him, so that my head was resting on his chest, just below his chin. I heard suck in his breath nervously. "….Kagome..?" he asked softly. I closed my eyes and smiled, nestling up to the smooth silk of his shirt. I felt happier than I ever had in my life. But then-

"SURPRISE!!!"

Suddenly I was covered with a wet sticky purple substance from head to toe. Dripping and livid, I looked up into the eyes of a crowd of girls (and a girly-looking boy), all holding empty buckets of purple paint and laughing their heads off.

"That's right, barney-girl! You keep away from my Inuyasha!"

"I hope that taught you a lesson you evil little girl!"

"Now bug off! _I'm_ dancing with Inuyasha now."

I looked down, sighed heavily, and cracked my knuckles.

-Later-

"Kagome, you didn't have to beat up ALL of them!"

"I didn't. A couple escaped. But I'll find them, mark my words. And when I do-"

"Noooo! Kagome, please just calm down! You're all washed off now, you've got a new dress that was just sitting around randomly somewhere and-"

"But don't you SEE, Inuyasha?!" I wailed, bursting into tears, "they've ruined everything! That dress cost $10! And even worse, now everyone thinks I'm stupid! You saw them! They all laughed!"

"There there now… hush… it'll be okay…" he murmured tenderly, putting his arm around my shoulder and stroking my hair. We were sitting on an isolated bench in the middle of the school garden. I had washed myself off with a garden hose- probably the second most embarrassing moment of my life- and changed into a pink flowered summer dress we had gotten from the lost and found. My perfect, shining hair, which had taken hours to perfect, was stuck against my scalp in a VERY unflattering fashion. My make-up had been washed clean off. And I think I was scarred for life. But Inuyasha was holding me close! He hadn't laughed at me! He had done everything he could to help me! The gentle bluish-white moonlight played across his handsome features and glittered in his beautiful amythest eyes and shone on his long flowing hair. It emphasized the unworldly perfection I had come to adore so much. So close to him, I began to notice even more details. His pupils were long and catlike. His hair was so much lighter. His canine teeth seemed a substantial amount longer. His fingernails had grown into razor-sharp, cut-glass talons. And I could feel the incredible strength locked inside the warm arm about my shoulders, though it cradled me like I was as fragile as a butterfly. This boy, I knew, was not human. At least… not any longer. And it only made me love him more. Without thinking, I leaned toward him and ran a finger across his porcelain cheek. His eyes widened. Our noses were almost touching. I could feel his soft breath tickling my face. Slowly, our lips came closer and closer together and then-

"SURPRISE AGAIN!!!!"

This time the paint was green, and there were only 4 girls and 1 boy. I beat them all to a pulp, except the one who escaped. But I would get my revenge on her. I always did.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

Fangirl #1, stood alone in the field of groaning, defeated bodies. She was the last survivor. All of them had failed in their sacred cause, except for her. She alone had proven herself worthy of The Hottest Hotty of All Time. And there was no way she was giving up now.

Sure his date could knock out a couple weaklings. After all, they were mere fledglings in the field of Love. But she, she was the grand master. She had been a fangirl for a staggering total of 18 incredibly hot boys. And she, through any method and every method, had dated all of them. Now Inuyasha was the next guy on the list. But in this case… Well, let's just say she had finally found someone worthy of her. She cracked her knuckles and strode off into the random mist, long blond hair streaming behind her like a flag of warning. She would get what she wanted, no matter WHO stood in her way.

"Kagome Higurashi, here I come!"

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

"Inuyasha?" (nicely)

"…Yes…?" (nervous)

"Can I ask you something?" (still nicely)

"Uhhh, sure….?" (still nervously)

"WHY DO YOU HAVE SO MANY BUDDHADAMNED STALKERS?!!!!"

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!"

"Ohhhhhhh …. Sorry, sorry, oh I'm sooo sorry… Are you okay?"

"…I'll survive… auuughhh…"

"I am SO sorry! Did I hurt your ears?"

"It's nothing… They've just been a lot more sensitive lately…"

"Ohhhh…. I see…"

"See what?"

"…nothing…"

AWKWARD SILENCE

We were sitting, alone but hopefully safe, in Inuyasha's Bananamobile. I had changed into yet another set of Salvation Army-destined clothes- a checkered purple skirt and a black baggy t-shirt that said "NINJA QUEEN" across it in blood-spattered red. The outfit couldn't have been more ridiculous. I sighed heavily and crossed my legs. Inuyasha twiddled his thumbs. We both listened to the gentle music spilling from the warmly lighted school windows on the bluff above us. The traitorous tears started spilling from my eyes again, hot and burning like acid. I tried to hide them but they spilled through my fingers and dripped onto the rusty floor of the Bananamobile. Inuyasha reached out a hand as if to comfort me, but I stopped him.

"No," I sniffed. "This is all my fault. I'm ruining this for you. Go up there and dance with one of your groupies. Have a good time. I don't want to wreck your evening. Go on, leave me!"

His eyes widened in surprise.

"Are you kidding me, Kagome?! You're the only reason I came to this stupid ball in the first place! I could never leave you!" Then he seemed to have a sudden thought. "Come on, Kagome," he said, excitedly, starting the engine. "There's a place I want to show you- Oh, please stop crying!" And he leaned over, kissed me softly on the cheek, and started the engine. I was sure the tears on my face froze in shock. My heart welled with happiness and love for the whole world. A feeling that didn't last long.

With a thump, someone fell from a tree overhead and onto the hood of the car, a figure swathed in black, crouching like a panther just before it pounces. The figure smiled, revealing perfect white teeth, and flipped back its long blond hair. "Going somewhere?" hissed Fangirl #1.

PAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREAKPAGEBREA

I stared out the windshield in disbelief, lips still tingling from the touch of Kagome' cheek. Not only had the insane, butt-ugly fangirls (and boy) ruined my poor date's outfit and her reputation twice, but now they were pretty much out to kill her. From my battle experiences in the other world, it was easy to see that this evil little specimen of the terrible effects of obsession was a ninja, and a skilled one, too. Nothing I couldn't destroy easily. But Kagome… Would I be quick enough to protect her? My new battle skills had gone so far untested, and I was unsure of my limits.

The blond, black-dressed girl stood up from her feline crouch and in one swift movement, had her face pressed against Kagome's window. Kagome squealed, "Meep!" at the ghastly face the fangirl/ninja was making and I felt an instant need to protect her.

"Kagome Higurashi, you filthy little man-stealer," hissed the fangirl, "I challenge you to a duel. The winner gets Inuyasha. Do you accept? Or are you too chicken? Bwak bwak bwak bw-"

"I accept, you little freak," growled Kagome, pretty face hardening into a ferocious scowl. "Prepare yourself!"

And with that, she was out of the car and leaping after the ninja/fangirl, cackling madly. For a while, I was too paralyzed with shock to move. Then I came to my senses. As I have mentioned before, I hate girl-fights- there have been so many of them during my time on this world, and back home, that it gets REALLY frustrating after a while. And it's even worse when they're about me. It makes me feel… guilty. So anyhow, back to the present, and the dangerous war-cries of the two powerful adversaries. I cut the engine and jumped out of the Bananamobile, pausing only to fume over the dent the fangirl had made in the hood, and bounded, with my preternatural speed, after the girls.

They were at the banks of the Takahashi river, which shone a brilliant silver in the moonlight, trading punches and kicks and curses. But even I could see that Kagome was losing. The ninja-girl leapt into the air and kicked Kagome in the stomach. She staggered, livid, and raised a fist to punch the fangirl, but the girl stopped her hand and slapped her across the face.

"Bad kitty," she crooned. "So, ready to give up, yet, like the bone-less little chicken you are?"

"Never!" Cried Kagome valiantly, and, with one last effort, raised her other fist and punched the fangirl on the face so hard she flew across the clearing. There was silence, except for the quiet, regular drip of blood from the fangirl/ninja's ruby lips to the dirty ground. Her eyes were shrouded with shadows, her face expressionless. Then,

"You're gonna regret that, you little bitch! I never meant to kill you, but… CHAAAAAAA!!!!!" She whipped back her arm and threw a handful of needle-tipped shuriken straight at Kagome's neck.

Everything seemed to suddenly slow down and grow silent. As if in a dream I saw them: the deadly metal stars glinting as they flew towards Kagome's slender, vulnerable neck, the Fangirl's slow, evil smile, crimson lips curled up, blond hair swirling, fingers outstretched, and Kagome's pale moonlit face, surprised, cerulean eyes widening, mouth a small o. She was really going to die!

Without a second thought I sprang across the clearing in front of Kagome, my body forming an impenetrable shield, face determined, arms spread wide. I managed to catch a shuriken with each hand, fingers darting out impossibly fast, and a third in my sharpened teeth, but the rest thudded into my body- my thigh, my stomach, my shoulder, my chest. But instead of feeling the sharp, cutting pain as metal sliced flesh, I felt… nothing! Merely a slight impact as the shuriken hit my rock- hard body and clanged to the ground. The fangirl and Kagome just sat there for a moment, and then another, and another, just sitting with their eyes wide, mouths wide, faces white. Then the fangirl knelt and sprang off into the disappeared like a ghost into the night and Kagome stood shakily, trembling mouth pulling up at the corners ever so slightly. Then her knees wobbled, and before I knew it, she had fallen into my arms and was, for the third time that night, crying.

"Oh Inuyasha! Thank you, so, so much!" I really could have... could have… If it weren't for you I… Oh, how could I lose to that _witch_?! I'm just so weak! And how did you…DO that??!!!"

Still shocked by my own actions, it was a while before I could reply. I had gained back more of my strength then I had thought… I didn't even notice as the silence stretched longer and longer, as I stood stiff and unmoving, staring up at the stars, thinking, slowly grinding the shuriken to dust in my hands, ignoring Kagome's upturned face and huge, frightened eyes. Then finally,

"Eh? What? Sorry, I wasn't really paying attention. I was just thinking about how I managed to do that…" I spat out the shuriken, and absentmindedly let the shining dust run like liquid silver through my long taloned fingers.

"S-So… so you don't know? You don't know how you're so s-strong and so fast and… s-special?" she asked timidly.

"Well, actually, I do, kind of," I said, smiling gently and wrapping my arms around her, "But it's kind of a long story and I still haven't taken you to that awesome place I wanted to show you. Do you mind if I tell you there?"

"Not really…" She murmured, staring up at me in wonder, but sounding insanely curious. I slipped my arm through hers, and we walked back to the Bananamobile in the moonlight, still recuperating from a very, very strange experience.

NEXT CHAPTER YOU GET TO KNOW THE SECRET OF INUYASHA'S MYSTERIOUS PAST! SEE INUYASHA AND KAGOME FINALLY KISS RIGHT! AND MAYBE… FIND MORE JEWEL SHARDS?? WHO KNOWS? So keep reading and reviewing and I'll update! Please? Maybe? No? Well, I'll update anyways, because it gives me an excuse to go on my computer and play Fate! Super-special thanks to Tegan12, Maia, Petpeeves12 (yes I put up a disclaimer, see?), Scorpio, Kitkatka, Eve (I started reading Lord of Light just because of you and I really like Sam!XD), CanYouTurnMyBlackRosesRed (yes I know what ASAP means), HispanicInuyashaLover (my most faithful reviewer!XD) and Zmiley (my other most faithful reviewer- so so so sorry 4 greatly editing the story). REEEEEEEEEEEEVIEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWW PLEAAAAAAAAAAAASE!!XDD (for all u folks out there who fav my story and then never review- not that I don't love u for it, of course).XD


End file.

Inuyasha, Humor, Romance