New Chapter for Love and War
Love and War
Disclaimer: I've got it! I'll buy you from Rumiko Takahashi!
Inuyasha: I didn't know I was on sale…
Me: Well now you are! So give me a price!
Inuyasha: um…ten million?
Me: -dumps the contents of piggy back- you think I could bargain that price down to five dollars, three pennies and a coke bottle that gets you a free happy meal at McDonalds?
Chapter 9: Thank You
-
-
-
Glows from a red and orange ball in the sky broke through the confinements of clouds. It shined through the dense leaves of the mountain ever greens to wake the ground, and through the clear windows of silent homes to wake occupants.
One home in particular greeted its favor with a groan.
"Five more minutes sun…"Ayame moaned as she flipped over on her bed so the light wasn't in her eyes.
"Sorry love, the sun doesn't have ears." She felt the side of her bed sink under new weight. Turning back around Ayame found the blinds had been drawn to block the light and Kouga was watching her with a smile, in his hands was a cup of coffee.
"Morning Kouga…" She sat up and gratefully retrieved the cup of coffee.
"Breakfast is on the table for you, but a tub of hot water is waiting in the bathroom, suggest you get in before it gets cold." He replied while walking to the door.
"Souten and Shiori?" She questioned then took a sip.
Who knew he could make coffee this delicious? It was better than Starbucks! Ayame moaned in delight. Who said being addicted to something was bad?
"All of the kids are in the bus. You need a day off, so they are going to help the team with practice."
"Are you sure?" What she really wanted to ask was if she was dreaming or not. Kouga nodded and waved his hand in dismissal.
"It'll be fine, just relax today. I heard Kagome and Sango are free today too so maybe you three can go somewhere."
-
"And there was absolutely no catch!" Kagome leaned across the table in shock as Ayame told her friends about what Kouga had done.
"No catch at all. And not only did I go downstairs to a breakfast better than any five star restaurant, but he left a hundred on the table so I could shop!" She grinned when Kagomes jaw dropped.
"Why so shocked Kagome?" Sango was picking through a small salad, "When the monk isn't being a pervert, he does the same things. Doesn't Inuyasha at least make coffee for you? Or take Souta and Shippo so you can have a break?"
Kagome stared down at the small tea stirring it slowly. Swirls of brown circled the cup as she sighed, "Not at all…"
-
-
"Miroku, dinner!" Sango set down a plate of food generously covered with home made ravioli. At the table already Kohaku and Rin happily ate and talked only glancing up when their father walked in preoccupied with a folder.
"I hope that's not what I think it is." Sango growled, her hand already armed with a pot she had been cleaning.
"It's not something you like, but not the one you were thinking of." Miroku grinned when she gave him a curious look, looking back into the folder he sighed, "B-i-l-l's"
"Oh." Finishing with the pot, she sat down across the way in front of her own food, "what's the matter?"
"Nothing," though he said it, his tone wasn't in the least convincing.
Sango set down her fork in preparation to wait out the quiet man. She was only a little surprised when he broke down so quickly. He had learned in the beginning when his wife set herself on knowing something there was no way to detour her from getting what she wanted.
"There is a game going on with our favorite teams against each other. Though the tickets are sold out, Kouga managed to get us some, but he says we need to put down fifty so the guy won't give them to someone else. Just trying to see when our bills are due…"
Sango knew that he knew they were due that week, which meant he wouldn't have the money to get the tickets. She smiled when she realized he hadn't uttered a word about not paying the bills.
"I've got some money left over, I'll pay the bills."
Miroku looked up from the folder in shock, "What?"
"Don't worry about it. Just go enjoy the game." Finishing her plate she also grabbed Rin and Kohaku's empty dishes and went to the sink, "You guys will be hungry and thirsty. Don't let me forget to pack you some dinner."
-
"You didn't even hint towards it?" Inuyasha frowned when Miroku handed him one of the three dinner boxes compliments of Sango.
"No, she thought of it herself." The monk grinned when he saw in his box was a container of homemade ice cream.
"I don't know why your so surprised Inuyasha." Kouga tried the rice, "Ayame does the same thing, but I must say her cooking is much better."
Kouga grinned when Miroku took a swing for his head. As the two battled over whose wife was better at what Inuyasha sat back lost in thoughts.
"Kagome doesn't do this…"
-
-
-
"Inuyasha food!" She set down the well prepared meal of shrimp pasta stopping Shippo and Souta when they ran to the living room.
"I hope you don't expect to eat with these filthy hands!" She numbed herself to their moaning while releasing them to clean themselves up. Inuyasha walked in with a smile and greeting staring at the meal with a grin.
"So what are we going to do today Inuyasha?" Kagome sat down, taking a leer at the boys hands as they ran back into the living room and dove into their plates.
The young man shrugged half heartedly while staring at his plate, "How about the park?"
It was a Sunday which meant they were on their own. It had become an unspoken agreement to make Sunday and Saturday the 'family day' in which they all went out together.
"Park?" They had not done that one for awhile, "Isn't there a circus or something today? At the park? Sure."
The couple settled down into a comfortable silence. After having to tolerate one another for more than three weeks, and confronting the issues that brought them to a cold relationship, the hatred had withered away to an almost nonexistent scar.
Actually, though they didn't do anything for each other, they began to like the company again.
"Hey Mom! Dad!" Souta jumped up looking at them both before continuing, "Only one more week until your project is done!"
"One week…" It was strange that it didn't feel like even yesterday had passed as twenty for hours. With them being so content, the time slipped out of their grasp. Inuyasha glanced at Kagome to see her nodding, but was it just him or did she seem sad?
-
-
Lions and tigers and bears! Clowns, musicians, and jugglers with acrobats the park was crowded with people laughing and talking.
Kagome held Soutas' hand tightly while following her husband directly at his heel.
'I'm amazed people can find each other here…' She thought finding a young boy who, for a second, was disengaged from his temporary mother by a running girl.
The teenage girl gripped the child's hand tighter and grasped Inuyasha's; no way were they going to be disconnected from each other.
Inuyasha jumped at the feel of a frail warm hand taking his. Turning around in surprise he quickly continued forward trying to ignore her and act unaffected. Holding his shirt was young Shippo.
"We should get seats first." He murmured to himself. Almost instinctively his free hand went to Shippos' back encouraging the boy to keep up beside him.
"Could you slow down..." The boy was half walking, half running to meet the long strides of his father.
A woman, perhaps one of the teachers volunteering, accidentally ran into the red head. With a yelp he tripped, but never touched the ground.
"This won't work." Levering Shippo to his knees with the hand gripping his blue shirt, Inuyasha bent down and picked him up under the arm putting him on his shoulders while walking, "You fall off your on your own kid."
Shippo nodded with a grin, small legs tightened around his neck while hands placed themselves on his head.
"Such a caring father, and so alert."
He stopped abruptly. Kagome crashed into his back, moaning about the hold up.
"Kaede?" She was smiling with a plate in her hands, "Well hello Kagome, nice to see you here also with your family."
Kagome found herself smiling before she could really help it, "So what are you doing here Kaede?"
"Same are ye I suppose." She nodded to herself watching the many students of hers walking around aimlessly, "Though I was here with a friend, I've seemed to have lost her…"
"Well wandering around here by yourself your bound to get killed." Both the women and children shot surprised glances at Inuyasha as he nonchantly invited the teacher to join them, "Just don't slow us down."
"So kind of you Inuyasha," She managed to say while following the band, with a smile she noted them all holding hands to stay together, "As it should be."
-
-
The tent was huge. Everyone decided that unanimously while walking inside by huddling closer together. Even young Shippo on Inuyasha gripped tighter so he wouldn't fall.
Finding a seat though was surprising easy. Especially with the schools toughest kid and the most known teacher in your group visible to everyone. Yes, they were able to score the best seats in the entire tent.
"This is great!" Shippo was carefully set down to join Souta who was beside Inuyasha on the young mans' other side was his wife and Kaede.
"So how have things been going?" The old woman started casually, she half expected a death look that told her she was only acting happy around the kids, but Kagome turned around with a gentle smile nodding her head, "Pretty good actually."
"No problems?" She stressed only a bit but the young woman was already shaking her head, "Well just this one thing, but overall no."
The old woman just nodded to herself. 'Now was the perfect time…'she sighed sadly shaking her head before nodding again, "What a foolish woman I am indeed. I am sorry Kagome, I thought this would work out but perhaps it was just my stubbornness. My pairing you was not fair, that is why I decided to make up for myself."
-
-
'Make up for yourself?' Inuyasha peered over curiously to where the two were conversating just in time to see the teacher pull out a small envelope.
"What is this?" Kagome was taking the material and slowly opening to reveal a white piece of paper.
Her hands were steady opening it, but as she gazed at the contents they started to shake until she dropped the paper an envelope to settle for shock, "What is that?"
Bending down he took the paper to also look at it, what he saw made him want to rip it to pieaces an yet also stare like a clueless child, "We will be more than delighted to accept Ms. Higurashi Kagome into our Agricultural program with a full scholarship…" He couldn't read anymore he was just too shocked.
She was really going away…
"Right after this project I advise you start packing." Kaede smiled, "Because though classes start in another two weeks after graduation, You will be moving in a week earlier to acquaint yourself the city."
"Kaede…" She was almost in tears, but yet still so shocked, as the lights dimmed and the curtains rose she whispered in the now silent tent, "Thank you…"
You can all flame me I'm so sorry! I would've updated to tell you that I hadn't given up on the story, but then I didn't want to get everyones hopes up on a new chapter only to discover it wouldn't be up for another month. I got a job! Yay me! Though the jobs been working me like a dog so I havn't had time to write -cries-
But I am writing now and I have not given up on this story. In fact I hope to have two chapters up today! This one would've been even longer, but this felt appropriate to leave off at. Sorry for the sort of cliffy. XD couldn't be helped.
Anyways I thinks its three chapters left until the end. Will this be anguish or not? That is the question... Thanks for the reviews so much! And thanks for being such loyal readers you don't know how much it means to me really! Without further ado. I'm writing the new chapter!
Z