Kagome is twenty years old when she meets one of her high school classmates on the street. Perhaps their paths are meant to cross on this specific day. Or perhaps it's pure coincidence. She's learned to take things as they come by now, but there are some things that are harder to swallow than others.

Eri hasn't changed much. She's still carefree and more than a little bit shallow. Qualities that have made her popular in school, that have kept Kagome from forming any sort of deeper relationship with her. She's also very much pregnant. Kagome smiles but it is tight on her lips, and she knows that if she asks about Eri's condition, she won't like the answer she'll get. Still, she asks. Maybe because she needs to know that she's right, that there are people who are simply not worth the effort.

Eri shrugs and chirps that stuff happens and what can you do. Casually, carelessly.

Kagome's smile becomes tighter. She says nothing more than what is typical and expected then goes on her way. She is right. Those kind of people…she loathes. The world is filled with all sort of people – but nobody is worse than those who make light of the weight a life carries.

The clock on the kitchen wall rings four o'clock and the smell of greasy bacon permeates the air. Kagome flips the bacon strips in the frying pan mechanically. Her wrist throbs with seething sensations, but she refuses to take painkillers, not that she even has any. She hates drugs and addictive substances of any nature, caffeine and nicotine being the exception. Her gaze shifts to the boy sitting on one of her kitchen chairs, short legs kicking beneath the table, nervous, silent. He hasn't spoken one word. Kagome has given him a bath, treated all superficial scratches, and dressed him in one of her shirts. Her wrist injury is more severe than his wounds, but he's malnourished, and probably dehydrated.

Now that he's clean, she can see that his hair isn't exactly white. It glints pure silver, long enough to reach the backs of his knees. It's pretty and unnatural, but then again, there's nothing natural about him. His eyes are honey-gold, with black-slit pupils, his nails sharp-tipped, his canines keenly elongated. His ears are soft to the touch, triangular, covered with pale fur. She doesn't know what he is. Only that he's isn't human. It makes no difference. He's still just a boy. More scared of her than she is of him.

When she finishes cooking, she puts a large plate with eggs and bacon, a bowl of steaming rice, and a glass of milk on the table. She smiles at him then takes her coffee cup and moves to the window to have a smoke and give him some space. He's wary at first, taking a couple sniffs before he even touches the plate, but hunger overpowers all notions of holding back once he's taken the first bite. Kagome cleans up after he's done and refills his glass. Taking a seat across from him, she catches his eyes, speaks with mellow tones, soothing.

"Can you…talk?"

His chin dips, almost shyly, but he still keeps quiet.

"Okay." A smile stretches her lips. He strangely reminds her of Sōta at that age. Human or no human…he's still just a boy. "My name's Kagome. What's yours?"

"Inuyasha." His voice spills out of his throat thin, tremulous, uncertain.

Kagome frowns at the peculiar name then stifles a laugh. Inu, huh? So these are dog ears… It makes sense in an offbeat but simple way.

"Do you have parents? Someone I can call?"

He fidgets with the hem of his shirt, answers after a few seconds. "Mama…I think she – died."

Caught off-guard, she stares at him, dumbstruck. "You think she –" Kagome clamps her mouth shut, bites her tongue. His mother is probably dead. A sigh builds in her lungs and she lets it out with a long exhalation. There's no point in asking him more about his mother now. The kid has been traumatized enough for one night.

"What about your dad?"

His brows furrow as if he's trying to remember. Not a good sign. "Mama said he died long ago."

Of course he did. Kagome sighs again. "Isn't there anyone else?"

There has to be someone. He's just confirmed that he's had parents at one point, so it's not like he's one of a kind in this world. No matter what he is, there are others of his race out there, under the public radar. She needs to find them and return him to them because the alternative is terrifying. It doesn't matter that he's a small, defenseless child. If the government learns of his existence, they'll subject him to numerous tests and probably dissect him under the pretense of knowledge and evolution. Unit 731 and their inhuman experiments may be something that's been silenced and written off as war atrocities, but everyone knows it has existed off the records.

He squirms in his chair, words tumbling out of his mouth too quickly. "Niisan…dunno where he is." Hope shines in his eyes, bright gleam of gold, and something else. Kagome doesn't care what it is right now. There will be time to learn more of his relationship with his brother later…after she finds him.

"What about your last name?"

A shake of his head is all he gives. This is frustrating, beyond maddening. Kagome takes in a deep breath to calm her frazzled nerves. It's not the boy's fault that he's unclear of his circumstances. In fact, his replies are coherent and his eyes sparkle with intelligence. She can't really expect more of him.

"All right." Her lips slant in a half-smile, and she tries a different approach, in hopes of different results. "Can you tell me why you were alone?"

"Came to look for niisan." He makes a grimace of disgust, nose wrinkled, lips peeled back. "Can't find him. It's strange here…many smells. I got lost."

The full display of canines should alarm her…but it's cute when he does it – and what he says is more alarming than the apical points of his teeth.

"You came searching for your brother?" It's unthinkable that he's been wandering alone in such a big city, that he's been allowed to do so. Especially since he can't blend in, not with his unearthly features. What kind of sibling allows for that? It strikes a chord deep inside her. Teeth bite the inside of her lip, almost bleed the soft flesh. She's sacrificed so much for Sōta that maybe her standards have become abnormally high…but gods help her if there isn't some good reason behind this level of negligence. She can only think of one reason, and it still isn't good enough, but it's something. Maybe they don't live together –

"You don't live with him?"

Another shake of his head. Kagome exhales the breath she's been holding. Anger leaches away but not all of it. Some small part sizzles quietly beneath the surface. If she ever finds that brother…no. When she finds him. She needs his name to find him though.

"What's his name?"

"Sesshōmaru."

There's something in the way he speaks the name that's stranger than the name itself. It's a cluster of emotions, meshed together, nearly inseparable – fear, respect, admiration, jealousy, and many others she can't quite decipher. She files it away for later inspection again and focuses on the most pressing problem.

"No last name?"

Kagome expects that he'll shake his head once more, accepts the reality of it all with grudging resignation. A weary smile hangs on her lips. She reaches out to stroke his cheek, and this time, there's no violent reaction on his part. His skin is smooth and warm…just like human skin. It's easy to forget he isn't human if she closes her eyes.

"You're not…human, are you?"

He leans into her touch, face turned away, breath fanning against her palm, words slipping past her fingers. It's almost as if he's…hiding.

"Mama was human. I'm hanyō."

Hanyō. Kagome twirls the word inside her mind, once, twice. Knowing what he is doesn't make it any less extraordinary, any less unbelievable. There's truth behind every myth, that much is proven, but to this extent? It's…surreal. Her head is pounding and she rubs her lids. She can only understand half of what he is – and so she grasps that like a lifeline.

"So half-human?"

A nod this time. Okay. She can deal with that, and if she finds his brother, she won't have to deal with the half that is alien to her.

"When was the last time you saw your brother?"

There's a small pause. Foreboding. "Years ago."

Kagome, too, is rendered speechless for long seconds. "Years…?" Now that…is just too much to be absorbed. Maybe she has misheard him. "How old are you?"

His entire face lights up and he's bouncing in his seat. "I'll be twenty soon!"

She's obviously heard him right…and it's still too much for her. Kagome really needs to find his brother. Soon.

"Why don't you live with your brother?"

He shrugs. "Dunno. Mama said it's..." His face scrunches up. A stutter is all that comes out of his mouth. "…com-comp-something."

Kagome chuckles. It may be surreal…but it's still cute. "Complicated?"

Another nod. She takes it in stride, wonders if maybe she hasn't been asking the right questions, so she changes her perspective.

"How were you going to find your brother?"

"Scent." His cheeks flush with color. "I know how to follow scents."

She studies him closely, gathers that it must be a skill worthy of compliment for his kind. Laughter bubbles in her throat, and she gives his rosy cheek a light pinch.

"That's very impressive."

He giggles, embarrassed, satisfied. Then his giggles dry up. His expression wilts, becomes troubled. "But I can't find him."

Kagome hums, ruminating. She's far from an expert, but if a child can scent-track, then it stands to reason that an adult of his kind will be even better at it. At least she guesses that his brother is an adult.

"Maybe he can find you? Can he also follow scents?"

His eyes grow wide and he breaks out in a squeal. "He can!" It doesn't last long again. "But he's not looking for me."

His eyes are hooded now. It's easy to infer what he doesn't say, what he doesn't want to say. Kagome strokes his hair, runs her fingers through the silky mass.

"He doesn't know your mother…passed away, does he?"

A sigh creeps up her throat when he murmurs a strangled no. She really doesn't have much of a choice here. Sōta has been living in his college dorm for the past two years and doesn't much use his old room. But that's not the issue. Kagome is tired of taking care of others – she just can't do it all over again. A child is a huge burden in another meaning. It won't be for long. The phrase is repeating itself in her mind. Not for long. Only until he finds his brother, or his brother decides to look for him.

"Do you want to stay with me then?" Even as she asks, she knows it's not a question but a decision already made. He can't say no. She can't let him say no. He doesn't either way.

Inuyasha peers at her through his lashes, abashed, smiling. "You're nice, Kagome. Mama said humans weren't nice."

That gives her pause, knits her brows. "But wasn't she human?"

His neck tilts in a small nod. "Mama was nice. But she said humans aren't nice like her."

She understands then. Humans can barely sympathize with their own kind.

"I'm sure she was trying to protect you." Kagome ruffles his hair and smiles but it is tight on her lips. "And she was right. Most humans…aren't nice."

Two weeks pass. She makes breakfast for two every morning. It's nostalgic and messy and sends her to work with a smile.

Four weeks pass. She begins teaching him kanji. His nails make it hard for him to hold the pencil properly, but Kagome feels that if she cuts them, it will be like cutting a part of him – his real nature – off. She buys a calligraphy set then. It's much easier for him to use a brush, and he's learning quite fast, but she discovers that his technique just…plain sucks. He's never going to dabble in fine arts.

Two months pass. She doesn't like that he's alone at home for so many hours and her contract allows for pets. A dog requires too much care though, and she isn't fond of rodents, reptiles, or insects. A bird in a cage is…nothing but irony – and loud. So she goes down to the animal center and adopts a cat. A rather chubby feline with patches of black and brown on her white fur. Lazy. Temperamental. Self-sufficient. Surprisingly, it is a perfect fit. Inuyasha calls her Buyo for reasons Kagome will never understand since the furball is nothing alike a gnat. He pulls on her tail and rolls on the floor with her and Kagome can't help but laugh when Buyo hisses and looks down her nose at him as if to say stupid dogs.

Four months and two weeks pass. She has to work overtime on the day she's promised to be home early and bake a cake for him. It's his goddamn birthday and she needs to leave work now. Inuyasha rarely complains, usually does as he's told, so obediently that sometimes she wishes he'll be a little bit petulant, a little bit difficult. Like normal boys of his age – but he isn't normal.

By the time she leaves work, Kagome is a knot of nerves and can't get home fast enough. She parks her car haphazardly, uncaring that she'll probably find a ticket stuck on her window shield come morning, and hurries through the back alley despite that she knows she shouldn't.

She becomes aware that she isn't alone in the alley far too late. There's something else in there, with her, silent, edgy, waiting. Kagome sees what it is before she feels its savage grip – the quintessence of aggression, coils of steel around her neck, cold-skinned strangulation. He is more than a man, less than a beast. Her back is slammed against the wall. The rush of the action pulls what little breath is trapped in her lungs out of her lips. Balancing herself on tiptoes and his inhuman grasp, Kagome wraps her fingers around his wrist, nails biting and digging into his flesh.

Chest heaving and out of breath and glutted with terror, she gazes into his eyes as she is pushed into that wall. How his eyes glare with keenness, spiked with edge, howls with animal instinct. Quiet. Close. There is a glint of something dark in his eyes – predator eyes, hunter sharpness. It rouses crawling sensations, shivers and dread licking her spine. When he speaks, his voice sears her lips. Low rasp of that aggression, whispered and rusted.

"Why do you carry my brother's scent, woman?"