Chapter One
Disclaimer: I don't own Inu-Yasha, no matter how much I want to. He, Kagome, Shippo, etc. belong to Rumiko Takahashi-sama and a lot of other people. I am not one of these people.
"Dammit, Kagome, it's freezing in here!!" I mutter to the girl walking
beside me.
"Oh, Inu-Yasha, quit your whining." she replies. "A little a/c isn't gonna
kill you. Like you're always telling me, you're a demon. You're tough.
Get over it."
"Kagome, what's a/c?" Shippo, the small boy staying close to her, asks.
She smiles at him. "It's short for air conditioning. Air conditioning makes
it cool inside a building when it's hot outside."
Shippo looks amazed. "Oh," he says. "Where are we going?"
"Shippo, I told you already, we're gonna find you guys some decent clothing.
Inu-Yasha and Miroku can't keep borrowing Grandpa's clothes, and you can't
wear my brother's stuff for this trip either. So, we're gonna find you
guys some clothes of your own."
"Lady Kagome, how much farther to this clothing store of yours? I don't
mean to nag, but these garments are a bit uncomfortable." Oh, great. Miroku
has decided to add his own two yen.
"Don't worry, it's not far." Kagome looks over at me suddenly. I make no
effort to disguise the look of utter contempt, disgust, and spite on my
face. "Inu-Yasha, wipe that scowl off your face. God, it's only a little
trip to the mall."
It's only a little trip to the mall. Yeah, right. More like, 'It's only
a little trip to hell.' How did I let her talk me into this? Oh, no, I
feel a flashback coming on.
"Me, too." Shippo replied, only moving slightly from where he had collapsed on a pillow.
"Stupid demon wouldn't die...and he didn't have a shard either." Kagome muttered violently.
I grunted in response. "Shut it. It's another busy day tomorrow, and I for one do not intend to be kept awake by your inane babble."
"Geez, Inu-Yasha! You've got a chip on your shoulder the size of Honshu! What's your problem?" Shippo cried as he sat up and looked at me curiously.
"He's right, you know. There's been something different about you lately."
Please. I could do without Miroku and Shippo's diagnosis of my personality, thank you very much.
"Correct me if I'm wrong, but I seem to recall telling you to shut it. Maybe you want to face tomorrow's opponents exhausted, but I prefer to be up to full strength."
Shippo flopped backwards onto his pillow. "They never seem to end. I guess you're right about sleeping."
I snorted. "Of course I am."
"If only we had some more time to rest," Shippo continued. "It would be a lot easier that way."
"That's it!!" Kagome exclaimed suddenly.
All three of us looked at her strangely.
"What's it?" Miroku asked, confused.
"We need...." She paused and looked at us as if we should applaud at any minute. "A vacation!!"
The strange looks continued.
"Oh, come on! Don't tell me you don't know what a vacation is!"
"We do, Kagome, but..." Miroku started.
Something clicked in my mind. "Do you realize what you're suggesting?" I shouted. "You're suggesting that we put the search for the Shikon shards on hold while you relax?!"
She blinked. "Well, yeah. The Shikon shards can wait, you know! They aren't gonna just up and walk away- OK, yes, technically they could, but...um....but what if there's another shard in my world? We've been so busy scouring this world that we haven't even considered looking in mine! Remember the Mask of Flesh? We wouldn't even have caught onto that one if I hadn't gone back to my time. So, what do you say?"
I stared at her for a moment. "A shard."
"Yes."
"In your time."
She nodded. "Well?"
"It does sound like fun," Miroku mused.
"Yeah, c'mon, Inu-Yasha!" Shippo chimed in.
"Please?" she pleaded, putting her infamous "sad puppy face" to good use.
I exhaled loudly. "Fine. I don't care. Just as long as we get another shard."
"Yes!!!" Kagome squealed. "All right! We'll leave tomorrow!!"
"Now shut it." I growled.
"Inu-Yasha?"
"What is it?!" I roar, turning around sharply to face Kagome. "I've had it up to here with-"
"Umm, Inu-Yasha? We're here."