The Girl Next Door

Inuyasha hadn't woken up until the next morning, when he heard the sound of a truck opening. He hadn't heard his mother, father or brother call him for dinner, and he hadn't heard his phone ring twelve times. He had managed to finally have a good nights sleep.

He was grateful that the day before was a Friday. It meant that he had the day off and didn't have to go to some stupid teachers detention…until Monday. Getting up from his bed, he could only guess that it was roughly between ten in the morning and noon. No one would be moving earlier than that right? Picking up his cell phone, he called up Miroku.

"Yes?" There was a slight pause as Inuyasha debated how he was going to break out the news. "Come over now. There someone moving in next door." "You mean in the house that Teddy used to live in?" All he could do was sigh. "The very same."

Theodore Parks had been friends with the two since they were in diapers. It just so happened that Teddy's dad had gotten a job somewhere in Miami and had moved the entire family there that summer. And now there were new people moving in.

As he stared out his window he could see Miroku racing down the street. He couldn't help but laugh when he saw his best friend trip up the curb. Inuyasha left his room and galloped down the stairs. Opening the front door, Inuyasha headed down the porch steps to meet up with his friend at the sidewalk. There were big burly men taking furniture into the house, but there was no one that seemed like they were the ones that were actually moving in. Didn't someone want to make sure that there wasn't anything missing? And then his ears twitched, picking up on a set of giggles. Turning his attention to his house, he gave Miroku a look of confusion. "Shall we check it out?" Miroku's question seemed to have struck a nerve with Inuyasha. "No…we're going to sit out here and wonder what the fuck is going on in there until something finally hits us on the head with an answer."

Storming through the front door, he could hear the giggles coming from the kitchen. Moving down the hallway, the laughing got louder. What could have been so funny, and who could it have been laughing? Walking around the corner, he peeked through the doorway. Sitting at the island counter were two beautiful girls. One was clearly older, but only by a year or two. They both had dark hair, the eldest with midnight black hair and the youngest with raven black hair. His eyes lingered on the taller of the two. She was gorgeous.

It was the younger one to notice him. She gave him a shy smile and then Izayoi looked over her shoulder. "Ah, honey. I see you've come down finally. I'd like to introduce Miss. Kikyou Higurashi, and her younger sister Kagome Higurashi."

Inuyasha could only nod. His breathing had almost become laboured, but still calm. He was entranced by Kikyou's beauty. And her sister wasn't all that bad either. "Uh, aren't you two going to make sure that all your stuff gets put into the house…I mean…you wouldn't want to lose anything right?" The whole time, he kept his eyes on Kikyou. It was almost like Kagome didn't exist.

"You're right, we should be heading back." Kikyou stood and gave Inuyasha a dainty smile. "Come along Kagome." And the two girls left the kitchen.

Izayoi stared after the two girls, not really enjoying the aura the older girl emitted. Kagome, on the other hand had the purest aura Izayoi had seen in many years. But she'd seen the way her son looked at Kikyou. She wished he hadn't, but there was nothing she could do about it. All she could do was wait and hope that the mistake her son had just made would correct itself in due time.

As the two girls made their way back to their new house, they were halted by none other than Miroku. "Would either of you lovely women like to accompany me to dinner and then my place?" Kikyou looked at Kagome, and vice versa. With a sound that bounced off the surrounding houses, both girls walked passed and into their house. Inuyasha scurried out of his house to see what had happened and came face to face with his best friend. The hormonal male stood in shock with two bright red hand prints throbbing on both his cheeks. "Ouch! Double time."

When the girls got home, they looked at each other. Though you would never guess by the way they acted in public, they really did care about each other. Well…at least one of them did. The younger of the two was always kind to her sister. Hell, she praised her older sibling. But Kikyou was quite the opposite. If she'd had a choice, she wouldn't be stuck with her half sister. But it was their mother's dying wish that the younger girl remain with her near twin and that the older girl be nice to her sibling.

Kikyou often scoffed at herself. Sure she'd promised her mother that she'd be nice to Kagome, but that didn't mean she was actually going to. The best Kikyou could come up with was tolerating the girl. "Did you see that guy?" Kikyou looked at Kagome with a near disgusted grimace. "What am I talking about…of course you saw him. You were practically drooling over him." Opening the fridge door, the older of the two reached in and grabbed a bottle of water. Kagome's cheeks turned a soft pink. "Push him out of your tiny little mind, he's mine. I saw the way he looked at me. He practically ignored you anyways." "But Kikyou, you're older than him. You'll be graduating two years before him." "Can it you mutt." Kagome's bottom lip began to quiver at the words. Tears built in her eyes. She hated when her sister called her that. It's wasn't her fault she had a different father. It wasn't her fault their mother died.

With several finally words, Kikyou went to her room, leaving Kagome to cry by herself in the kitchen. When the grandfather clock in the hallway chimed six, Kikyou came out of her room and sauntered into the kitchen. She looked at the table that was already set and the steaming pot on the stove. Looking around, she couldn't find Kagome. Kagome rounded the corner and bumped into Kikyou. "Excuse me." Kikyou moved out of the way, staring at Kagome. "What's wrong?" Her tone wasn't one of sincere worry, but more along the lines of rude curiosity. Stirring the contents of the pot, Kagome ignored Kikyou's question. "We're having stew tonight. I'll go grocery shopping tomorrow after school." Kikyou shrugged her shoulders and sat at the table. She had to wait five minutes before Kagome brought the pot over to the table, placing it in the middle. Being the oldest, Kikyou thought she was the best and deserved to go first. Kagome didn't bother to argue with her. Right now she wanted as little to do with Kikyou as possible.

Dinner was eaten in silence, both women avoiding eye contact. When they were finished, Kikyou returned to her bedroom, leaving Kagome to do the dishes. As she cleaned the pot out, Kagome couldn't help but wish the opportunity to leave was available. But this was the only home she had. She had no friends yet, no other family. It was hard for her. She was treated like a personal slave to Kikyou, but she wasn't. She was her sister. Half sister. Kikyou would never let her forget it. She wasn't a Saito like Kikyou. She was a Higurashi and she knew nothing would change that.