Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, but I do own this idea.

A/N: Chapters are getting longer and longer, and I'm not sure I'm happy about this. T.T Oh, and sorry for the delay (as always), thank you for the reviews, and this chapter was looked over by Tomatosoup inc. You can thank her if it's any good. ;P

Edit 12/17/11: I went back and added a little bit to the ending, since it didn't feel like a conclusion. I'm not sure this other ending is any better, but if you're rereading this chapter or something, I'd love if you gave me your opinion on it. :)

Terminology

People/Names
Reibai – spirit medium, "ghost whisperer"
Youkaihanta – ghost buster, spirit hunter
Ningen – human being, mortal
Onee-san – a child's polite way of addressing a young female stranger
Onii-san – a child's polite way of addressing a young male stranger
-kun – a honorific most often for a teenage boy, sometimes for girls in the workplace
-chan – a honorific used for a teenage girl, little kids, childhood friends, or small animals

Things
Youki – typical demonic or youkai energy/aura
Suikan – Japanese hunting jacket with squared shoulders and wide sleeves (Inu's red shirt)

SOULMATE:
YOU'RE A SOUL YET I'M YOUR MATE?

10: A Sight For Sore Eyes

"Life is nothing but a competition to be
the criminal rather than the victim."

—Bertrand Russell

I thought today couldn't grow any more interesting, but apparently, Kami never grows tired of proving me wrong.

After I make some coffee and put a Band-Aid on my cut, Shippou sits next to me at the dinner table, playing with the comics section of my newspaper when Souta enters the kitchen, dropping his backpack on the chair across from me before heading to the fridge. I raise an eyebrow at his lack of manners, and when he turns and realizes he never greeted me, the kid smiles sheepishly.

I roll my eyes. My ass, he feels guilty. "Hello to you, too, twerp. How was your day at school?" I ask him as I take a sip of the coffee I have yet to get used to. I continue flipping through the newspaper, hoping to catch anything that might be related to Hitomi's case, but I can't find anything.

Oblivious to my multitasking, Souta shrugs. "Eh, alright," he confesses, taking out a carton of milk and going to get a glass. "I met a lot of new kids who said the soccer club will let me join; I asked Sensei if it was alright during free period, and he said I could try out for the club Friday."

I nod, showing my approval of this since joining a club can lead to scholarships, which are always great for financially-challenged orphans. "During school or after?" I inquire.

Souta hesitates for a moment, probably wondering if lying would really help him at the moment, and he sighs when I give him a warning glare. "It's pretty late since Sensei has stuff to do before then, like train the team he already has," he admits. "He didn't want me to take away from their time to practice, so I'll watch and participate before he runs a private test for me. It'll probably go until…seven, seven-thirty."

"I'll pick you up then," I promise, holding back my distaste for coffee as I take another sip. I can't help noticing his shoulders slump in relief since I didn't get on his case for having to be at school so late. I'll admit that I usually do since post-sunset is when most stray yuurei and youkai come out to play, but upon learning I have quite a few allies in the area, I'm not too concerned with him staying late. Turning the page from the most recent news to the local section, I ask, "How did things with your friend go?"

"Pretty good," Souta answers, pouring himself some milk. "Satoru-kun and I went to the arcade for a bit, and I made some friends with a few kids from other schools. And at his house, we talked about how weird our classmates are. Like, there's one guy in the front row whose older brother sells drugs for a living, another whose mother is reportedly sleeping with the principal, and the girl right next to the guy whose brother sells drugs has this public crush on our Japanese Lit. teacher."

I pause in my reading, meet his eyes for a moment, and ponder the fate of the next generation before paying attention to my newspaper again.

Souta blinks, taking his first sip of milk before going on. "One athlete who's dyed his hair in class is rumored to punch whoever you tell him to"—oh, dear Kami—"another might be buying steroids from that one guy's brother"—I really hope this a joke—"and apparently, there's this one girl whose parents have pulled her out of school for two weeks ever since her ex-boyfriend got ran over by a car."

Suddenly, a light bulb goes off in my head, and I stare at my brother in awe.

Despite my interest peaking, Souta goes on, lost in thought. "Satoru-kun says he thinks she's mourning or that the guy may have been following her before he got hit, and her guilt complex is why she's not there anymore, but I don't—"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Souta," I interrupt, my inner detective's intuition taking over. "Sorry to cut you off, but did Satoru mention these kids' names?"

He blinks. "Um, yes. Hitomi-chan and Makoto-kun. Why?"

I grin because this is it—this is my lead, my clue to the mystery, the piece I finally found in order to complete the puzzle. Tossing my newspaper down and finishing my coffee—albeit grudgingly—I inform my brother, "You know, I think you may just be able to help me this once."

"Oh, gee," he mutters sarcastically, going to drink his milk again. "Thanks, Nee-chan. That makes me feel so special, it really does."

I smirk in return.

Then, as if just catching up to what I said, Souta takes a pause from sipping his milk, furrows his eyebrows, and says dumbly, "What?"

Next thing you know, I'm outside, screaming at the top of my lungs,

"Inuyasha!"

"Gods-DAMMIT!" he yells, though it's pretty muffled by the concrete of the shrine yard.

I guess shouting at him whenever he's napping on Goshinboku isn't exactly the nicest way to get his attention, but concerning my news and current happiness, I could really care less.

Inuyasha's the opposite of my mood, though, as he forcefully pulls his face from the cement and glares at me so fiercely, it may have rivaled my glowers at the kappa—may have. He demands in a growl, "What the fuck, woman? Are you some sort of sadist?"

"Possibly," I admit, "but that isn't the issue here." Humming mischievously, I skip right to his spot at the base of the tree and plop down beside him. He looks at me as if I'm about to purify him to dust, which brings me down for some reason, but I don't let it tamper with my excitement. "Guess what?" I ask elatedly.

"You've lost it?" he mutters darkly, picking at some frayed seams in his suikan.

Still buzzing, I answer, "Nope."

"What in the seventh hell is it then?" he snaps, eyes darting to me.

Pretending as if his attention means nothing—since it will increase the suspense—I grin even wider. "Are you sure you want to know? I mean—"

"Yes," he mutters darkly, rolling his eyes. "Yes, I want to know. Now just tell me, damn you."

I just smile, watching the sunset once more as it spreads warmth in the darkening sky full of hues ranging from gold to violet, leaving no trace of stars behind. "I solved the case. I know how we're going to solve this one, what's happened, and what will happen if we don't." Sensing his shock and curiosity—no matter how much he thinks he's masking it—I explain, "Makoto has been haunting Hitomi because he never got to tell her was that he loved her."

"And how the hell did you get that?" he grumbles, granting me with a curt glare before yawning, pretty much ruining its effect.

Too proud of myself to really care about his usual rudeness, I keep on beaming and speaking. "Souta heard it all from his friend: they were from different social classes that held different values. I'm guessing while Makoto thought money was everything, Hitomi thought words and actions counted most, which is what lead to their break-up," I tell him, remembering Kazuko's words back at the shop and my brother's explanation in the kitchen. "According to their classmates, she didn't care much for gifts, and he wasn't one to say how he felt. I bet all the stuff we saw in her bedroom were old presents from him, and I bet even more that Hitomi saw his constant gifts as him trying to buy her heart instead of earn it. Since all he told us was how he wished she'd 'known', it's obvious he died before he got it through to her that he did love her."

Before I can continue, a certain bipolar hanyou interrupts without a second thought. "What a load of bull," Inuyasha huffs, crossing his arms, and I raise an eyebrow, curious as to what he's getting at. Returning the gesture, he explains, "What bitch doesn't like getting shit?"

…Did he really just say that? Shaking my head at this half-demon's infinite amount of ignorance, I refrain from throwing a knife his way right then and there. What an idiot.

"Moving on," I say, ignoring his irritated growl in favor of the topic at hand. "Rumor has it that he was going to confess his love for her before he died. He was following her after school, chasing her down to confess when he was hit by a truck; he died later on in the hospital." I feel Inuyasha staring at me, and even though it feels constricting—similar to a teacher's—the words continue flowing from my mouth. "Now Makoto's haunting Hitomi has made her eyes open permanently, as if that'll somehow make her see his love for her now that he's dead."

Inuyasha avoids my gaze, shaking his head and rolling those golden eyes of his, as if the whole situation itself is unbelievable. Which it's obviously not, considering two teenagers have been put under these sad circumstances.

And now that his gaze has been torn away from me, I magically feel as if I can breathe again. I inhale deeply before going on. "I'm guessing the reason she's sleeping is because that's when love is 'at its purest'—you know, when someone's sleeping and you see the side to them you never did when they were awake, when they can't hide their true selves from you and so on."

Inuyasha's eyebrows furrow, and before he looks at me again, I decide to rush through the rest. "However," I add on, "since his love's a bit more selfish than genuine—right now, anyway—I think she's more asleep due to the fact yuurei are able to share feelings and thoughts through dreams with the living. So, Hitomi could have been receiving messages from Makoto in her sleep these past few weeks.

"The whole situation formed because he wants her to figuratively see his love for her in its 'best state'," I conclude, nodding my head and leaning back as my speech finally starts to feel worthy of an A-plus. "So, in order for Makoto to move on, we need to somehow convey the message to him that she does know he loves her or vice versa: get it across to the forever-sleeping Hitomi that she was loved."

And that's how the cookie crumbles.

Though I'm proud of myself for figuring this all out within one evening and managing to explain it all without having to stop and think over my words—I've never been very good with speeches—I feel Inuyasha's eyes on me for a while. After a while, I finally turn to him with a raised brow and ask, "What?"

Inuyasha looks at my face idly, and I blink in confusion. He asks, softer than his voice has ever been, "You're okay, right?"

My eyebrows furrow. What does he mean—? Oh. "Yeah," I reply, looking down at the band-aid barely visible to my vision before holding onto my cheek. "I almost forgot about it, actually," I admit.

"Keh, whatever," he scoffs, bristling as if I've somehow offended him. Seeing as he's bipolar, I wouldn't be surprised one bit if I have. He huffs, glaring at the air, "Not like I cared or anything." I give him an incredulous look, raising an eyebrow again before he snaps, "Shouldn't you be in bed already or something?"

My eyes magically roll in their sockets again. "Whatever you say," I drone, getting up from the ground and stretching languidly as a yawn escapes me. Who cares if it's only the evening? I'm deadbeat, and not just from getting barely any sleep last night—also due to the fact I've been running around Tokyo all day and socializing with people I barely know. As soon as my yawn ends, I head to the house and mumble on my way, "Goodnight, Inuyasha," deciding to let the poor half-demon return to his sleep and stop nagging me.

"Feh."

Oh, screw him anyway. Not like I need a proper goodbye to sleep peacefully tonight, especially from some bipolar jackass who haunted my school's innocent biology teachers for the day.

Huffing, I enter the house, well-aware of Shippou still playing with the newspaper and Souta's going over his homework while pondering over the paper that's moving of its own accord. Jii-chan is snoozing on the sofa, ever the couch potato since Souta and I began doing half a day's work for him. Then again, he's probably even more exhausted than usual with his brother's death weighing down on him. I tiptoe past him to ascend the stairs and take a quick shower since Kami knows my poor hair needs it. I enter the bathroom, locking the door behind me and evaluating the area for any vengeful water imps before giving a nod and turning on the shower nozzle.

You may call it paranoid, as would most of the general population. I, however, refer to it as being careful.

I don't take my time inside the shower, instead hurriedly scrubbing myself down to the point where my skin reddens and using uneven amounts of shampoo and conditioner to finish it off. I skip taking a bath afterward, leaving the cold water for Souta when he comes to take his tomorrow, and quickly dry myself off before securing the towel around my chest and racing to my room.

I inhale a breath of relief and feel myself finally begin to relax. And now, to return to my precious bed—

"Kagome?"

Oh, for the love of— I hold in a curse and turn to meet Shippou's eyes that seem oblivious to the fact I'm practically naked, which is just a tad odd. I overlook it for the most part, though, when I notice how he seems to be teetering on his feet a little, anxious about something other than the fact that I'm undressed. I raise an eyebrow. "Yes?" What's on his mind? And why hasn't he realized I'm partially nude and would prefer to be in my room rather than the hallway?

"Um, I was wondering…" His kitsune feet—more specifically, paws—fumble together a bit, his emerald eyes glued to the floor. "Can I…? If I could—"

"Yes?" I repeat in a steady tone, though I'm secretly losing my patience, considering there's a marvelous mattress calling my name right now. I wonder if he's losing his train of thought already and muse over what topic would make him so edgy. When he doesn't continue, I encourage briskly, "C'mon, Ship—out with it."

He looks up at me with those big, green eyes, and then everything goes blank except for "Can I sleep here with you—just for tonight?"

When I'm stuck with a fox under the covers beside me, a fluffy tail tickling my side every minute or so, I tell myself, It was the eyes…! I'd rather do that than allow myself to believe a demon I've known for less than a week has already gotten under my skin and crawled his way into my heart. But then again, maybe it was more than the eyes—maybe it was also the fact that I knew his mother abandoned him a little, and he's searching for a mother figure. He spoke somewhat fondly of Kikyou—not very fondly, not even as fondly as he did Inuyasha, but somewhat, so maybe all he needed was an older woman's comfort—?

He sniffs in his sleep and promptly kicks me in the back.

Or not.

I huff silently, turning to him and the window in order to glare at the full moon, receding ever so slowly as the night passes on. I'm really too nice for my profession, especially since I work alone and am surrounded by youkai and ghosts constantly. Maybe I am befriending a demon more than a taijiya should, even if he doesn't have even one trace of jyaki in his system. But I'm only doing it just this once—only a little—and then that's it. No more youkai best friends from then on and out.

But then again, the Shikon Five worked with demons just fine, didn't they?

I close my eyes again, willing myself to just go to sleep, but when a small hand clutches my sleeve almost desperately, my eyes snap open and roll all the way back to my head. Inwardly cursing, I bring the kitsune closer and allow him to hug me in his sleep. Judging by his tightened eyes and stressed muscles, he's having a bad dream.

I sigh and rub his hair until he relaxes, then finally confess to myself, yes, I have just befriended a youkai on some more personal terms. Even though he's a child, I must admit I've never really grown close with a demon during my time as a taijiya and youkaihanta. I've barely even treated a ghost this way since they don't need any more lingering attachments to this world, and considering I'm not really resisting it, who knows who's next.

Hm…maybe Inuyasha?

I almost wake up Shippou by laughing at that one.

Inuyasha—a friend? I mean, I can get ally, but friend? Buwhahahaha, that's funny.

However, I note, staring out my window to the nearest tree, he did distract everyone today from Hojo Akitoki's death. Staff and students alike were moping about it yesterday and this morning—even my sleepless self could recognize this—but as the hours passed, the students began buzzing about a possible yuurei haunting the biology lab. And according to the student body, this ghost made dead frogs float and knocked over numerous test tubes involving some experiment they conducted to observe the composition of fruit.

Though everyone only paid me any real attention on the first day I arrived, Yuka, Eri, and Ayumi—the three girls I met in Kouga's class—still talked to me, all gossiping about the possible school ghost. They even went as far as wondering if he'd "haunt" the girls' locker rooms, which I doubted, considering Inuyasha was thoroughly horrified when he saw me without even my shirt. However, I was too busy resting my eyes to bother correcting them or coming up with an excuse as to how I'd know he wouldn't do such a thing. Not to mention, Inuyasha was also helpful today with the whole "She Whose Eyes Won't Close" Case…

Okay. So he's not that bad after all—maybe even a bit heroic, with how he dealt with Makoto and made the kid apologize to me—but a friend? Pff, I repeat: that's funny.

I'm torn from my thoughts as Shippou breathes on my bicep, and I try to get used to the feeling as I stare at the wall across from me. With a little kid in my arms, it's hard not to imagine myself in Mama's place as she held me in my sleep during our family nights where we'd bring out a large futon, Souta by Papa, and my mother keeping me close. I was hoping I could have the bed to myself tonight, but with someone else here, I find myself wincing as I remember the jokes my father would make in the dark, Mama and Souta's giggling, and how I'd roll my eyes and clutch onto the pillow that smelt of my mother's shampoo.

Strawberry…just like the band Cream's logo…

I grimace at the connection, forcing my eyes close and erase the moment from my mind. I take deep breaths, hoping it'll relax me enough to fade away from consciousness. Then, at some point, sleep consumes me, and I find myself dreaming of hypnosis, laughter, and large smiles before broken glass consumes all the light left.

/~\*/~\*/~\*/~\*/~\

Sunlight streamed through one of the windows on the day of her tenth birthday, and her mother stood at its base, staring into the crowded streets below. But there was something off about this whole thing that had left the birthday girl with a tilted head and innocent interest before she took a place beside Mrs. Higurashi at the windowsill.

Mere minutes earlier, Kagome had been in another room entirely, but upon realizing her parents held answers she had no idea to, she rushed out to the main room to talk to one of them. And yet she came across her mother, holding a steaming tea cup and looking outside with a worried, uncharacteristic gaze.

This wasn't like her mama, especially on her birthday, and so she saw no choice but to figure out what was on her mind.

She stood resolute by her mother's side, following the movement down below, all the while wondering what was so fascinating yet cheerless about it. Eventually, she noticed her mama's eyes were scanning the roads as if searching for something, and though Kagome tried to help her look, she had no idea what she was looking for.

Finding nothing but some familiar faces and cars outside, the just-turned-ten year old looked up at the woman beside her, whose chocolate eyes were unusually weighty that morning. "Mama?" Receiving no reaction, the girl tugged on her mother's blouse with furrowed eyebrows and repeated a bit louder, more concerned, "Mama?"

Almost as if coming out of shock, Mrs. Higurashi turned to her at first with wide eyes before finally smiling, causing the creases in her face to recede. "Hm? What do you need, Kaggie honey bear?"

She opened her mouth, the question on her tongue when the nickname threw her off, and she suddenly felt like she'd be ruining whatever good mood her mother managed to find. "Nothing," she whispered, "but, Mama, I was wondering…" She meant to say something, to fill in the space and get to where she wanted to be in the conversation, but Kagome found it was harder than she thought to really ask what was going on with her, so instead her throat locked up and she just stared at the floor silently.

Moments passed as the woman stared at her daughter quizzically, and finally, the child drew a sigh. "It really was nothing," she insisted, twiddling with her thumbs when she felt the other's eyes on her even more, curious and somewhat worried. "But I was just wondering…can we get t-shirts at the concert?"

She noticed the change in her mama instantly: her grip on the cup turning lax, her shoulders loosening, and suddenly the smile turned genuine, nearly relieved, which made her feel just as happy in return. "Of course, sweetie." Mrs. Higurashi drew her daughter in for a hug and quick kiss to her short, raven hair, and Kagome smiled before skipping back to the other room, dreaming of that night's possibilities.

Looking back years later, she realizes her mistake that day.

She should've asked what was on her mother's mind while she had the chance.

/~\*/~\*/~\*/~\*/~\

Of course the one night I expect myself to sleep decently, I wake up at three in the morning as usual from another dream.

Why my dreams are suddenly stealing my sleep from me now all these years later, I'll never know, but I continue to groan softly, rubbing the goo out of my eyes as I search my room for the time. My alarm clock says two more hours to go until I should get ready for school, but my body says I should just go back to sleep and stay under the covers forever. I'd personally rather obey my body, but my darned conscience makes me maneuver around Shippou so my legs can swing out from the covers and touch the floor, pulling me out of bed.

Darn it all.

I sigh, stretching upon standing, and leisurely make my way into the hall. I descend the stairs carefully, afraid of making them creak too much, thus waking up Souta, Shippou, or Jii-chan. When I hit the bottom step, I exhale with relief and silently walk into the kitchen to make myself some coffee to start the day.

At first, I had no clue how to make coffee. I certainly couldn't learn it from Tsuyu, who—though skilled with tea—depended on Starbucks for her morning boost. Jii-chan's a fan of oriental food, and I'm pretty sure what actual food he's eaten has been from the visits Tsuyu, Souta, and I made. The only thing my parents really got to teach me was how to make cereal, leaving me with Tsuyu as my only cooking instructor.

And then I discovered this beautiful thing called Google, and though the coffee is crap, it is made.

When I drink it this time, I don't hold back my disgust—my nose scrunches up, and I feel a gag coming on. I have no idea why I suddenly thought coffee would be an awesome energy source, but I'm slowly becoming to regret the decision to rely on it. Actually, maybe I thought if I got used to my crappy coffee, I'd start visiting coffee shops on my own and meet some nice guy who was born to meet me, as I was him. You know, like Tsuyu and that idiot Nobunaga.

I nibble on my lip, then take a nice, long gulp of coffee.

Time to think about other things already, such as the fact it's only Wednesday and so much shit has happened since I've arrived in Tokyo already. I shake my head. If everything happened in a matter of four days, I can only wonder what's yet to come. The amount of youkai and yuurei I'm taking care of may increase significantly here, or maybe I'm just getting a lot of missions right now because the local taijiya organization has been booked recently. So, that would mean all these demons have been left unattended to whereas the ghosts were just ignored overall.

Who knows, but I have the feeling my secret professional life is about to get more hectic.

I sigh, taking a smaller sip before glancing out the window tiredly, again looking at the moon in a haze. It passes through my mind idly maybe, just maybe, my father stared out this same window when he was a teenager on the nights he had trouble sleeping, and if those nights ended once he met my mother.

My eyes soften, remembering just how happy they were together, before flickering and focusing on a figure in Goshinboku. At first, I dismiss it as Inuyasha's silhouette due to the darkness of the night. However, the moon's still bright from this weekend's full moon, so I know when I distinguish long, raven hair from silver, it's no illusion.

Some woman is hovering over Inuyasha.

With wide eyes, I stare and stare and stare endlessly, not exactly sure what to do. Run the hell out there, demanding answers, thus waking up Inuyasha and causing possible chaos? Or stay where I am, wondering who the hell is sitting by his side, staring at the moon? Since I'm half-asleep, still disoriented, and Inuyasha's never happy to wake up, I choose the latter, just gazing at the pale, long-haired woman dressed in pretty kimono.

All I can really make out is that she's certainly not a demon—all the energy I can sense is Shippou and Inuyasha's familiar youki. I'm not in the same atmosphere as her, so I can't tell if she's a ghost or spirit. Maybe she's some sort of cosplaying psychic who randomly passed by, sensed Inuyasha, and is now fascinated with his being?

…oh, dear gods. Inuyasha—fascinating.

I let out a laugh.

Chuckling into my hand, shaking my head in amusement, I take just one more sip of the coffee before glancing out the window again. I'm curious as to why she's here, whether she be a ningen or yuurei. And why specifically hang around Inuyasha? If she's a ghost, does she hold some sort of connection to him? Or maybe…she's a human admirer?

My eyes widen and, all of a sudden, my attention rests solely on Goshinboku, which now only has one occupant. Inuyasha looks like he's sleeping peacefully whereas I'm blinking repeatedly, questioning my perception of things in general. I stare at the coffee in my hands, mystified, then glance to the space the woman once took up before quickly focusing on my cup again.

I wonder: should I not drink coffee after waking up anymore? On second thought, due to the Kohaku incident, am I just insane in general? Maybe even placed a hair band similar to Kohaku's on my own wrist?

I shake my head fiercely, dumping my drink in the sink before heading back upstairs, mumbling to myself all the way.

Screw starting the day; I need more sleep—pronto.

/~\*/~\*/~\*/~\*/~\

I never thought I would willingly put my brother in danger's way before, but considering he volunteered and I'll have Inuyasha for back-up, I don't mind using him as some sort of bait for this mission. I prepped him on how to handle ghosts properly in case Makoto were to get aggressive with him, and Souta took it all in stride, nodding firmly with each direction I gave.

But, as I've mentioned before, my brother is one of those pansies who's all up for planning to save the world, and then run like fuck when it comes to doing the deed itself.

I sigh, strolling down to Feudal Antiques while Souta mumbles to himself (I actually think he's giving himself a pep talk…). Inuyasha's nose scrunches up at the restaurants nearby as he walks through people thoughtlessly, sometimes even growling at the even more oblivious people passing by. I just roll my eyes, not really wanting to embarrass myself in public by nagging at a ghost since, even though he's nearby and could be mistaken as the receiving end of my ranting, Souta's talking to himself, clueless to me or fellow pedestrians.

Kami save Hitomi with these two as my assistants.

Unfortunately for me, early this morning, I made the mistake of telling Souta my plans. The only reason I'd done it was so that he could cover my chores for me after school, but upon hearing my case involved his classmate, the kid was all for helping me and insisted he bring over Hitomi's absent work while he was at it, too. So I guess you could say it was my own fault that my plans have been delayed by a half hour or so. Upon picking him up from school with an inu-hanyou following my every move, Souta proceeded to happily tell me his coach said he could return for his tryout later. I nodded faintly before Souta fell into his nervous wreck spell and we got to where we are now.

Finally speaking to me since school let out, Inuyasha mutters as if Souta will hear him, "Why's your weirdo brother here?" He's probably remembering when he was first introduced to Souta…and the thirteen-year-old went into fanboy mode.

Despite that, though, I roll my eyes. "He's not weird"—my gaze settles on the kid as he gives himself a pep talk—"much." Inuyasha gives me an are you blind? face, and I glare at him silently in return, refusing to admit my brother might just be the odd one of this bunch.

And, while our eyes are on each other once again, I think back to this morning and the morning before that, considering telling him how I've been seeing things or not before deciding to save the topics for another time—or never.

Our trip to the store today actually takes less time than it did yesterday, but with companions like these, it certainly doesn't feel that way. When Inuyasha trips Souta lightly at the curb, I ignore them in favor of opening the front door, letting the ding of the door and dust in the air accompany me as I leave the two stooges behind. I call out, "Kazuko-san? It's me, Higurashi Kagome."

"OH!" I hear her exclaim from the backroom.

At last, Souta and Inuyasha follow in behind me, the hanyou's nose acting up again with the dust while my brother scowls and wipes gravel off his uniform, muttering, "So much for Nee-chan's new friend being cool…"

"Friend," he says. "Cool," he says. And here I go, rolling my eyes again.

Thankfully, Kazuko doesn't notice as she hurries into the main room to meet me. "I'm sorry," she insists, wiping some smudge off her hands with her apron. "I would've been out here in the front, but I had to fix some pipes…" She trails off when she sees I've brought company, then looks at me expectantly.

Honestly, since I'm terrible at socializing, I almost don't realize how rude I'm being for not introducing Souta until he mimics her expression. Whoops. "Kazuko-san," I say, "this is my brother, Souta."

"Oh!" Hitomi's mother says pleasantly, always in the mood for that short syllable. I smile as she greets Souta with the same warmth she eventually bestowed upon me. "It's very nice to meet you, Souta-kun."

Showing his shyer side, Souta bows slightly and returns the phrase before continuing, "As it turns out, ma'am, I have class with Hitomi. If you like, I'll go ahead and give her the assignments she's missed when she wakes up."

Kazuko looks surprised for a moment before her face genuinely lights up, looking even more content than she did yesterday when I promised her I'd bring Hitomi back to normal. Maybe it's just me, but I think Souta's words helped just a bit more—because when he said it, it sounded like a guarantee his classmate would be awake to accept her homework.

Hitomi's mother still has a smile on her face when she turns to me, and I feel I'm actually seeing the true woman behind the somber, stressed façade I met earlier. Though I'm afraid I might ruin her newfound good mood, I feel it's the right time to ask, "How have things been here with your daughter?"

Luckily for me, her mood doesn't change too much. "Better," Kazuko sighs, slumping a bit in what I presume to be relief. Inuyasha and I share a look before she insists, "Come with me to the back; I'll make some tea."

This time, I motion for Souta to follow me as I walk with Kazuko to the living room Inuyasha and I sat in before. Right as I round one of the chairs, an eruption of a sneeze occurs behind me, making my knee whack into a wooden rocker in the midst of my shock. Hissing silently as Souta talks with Kazuko about how he could help her those pipes, I glare at Inuyasha, who does nothing but innocently stare back.

"Asshole," I mumble, resisting the urge to hold my knee in agony. It hit just the right spot… Dammit. That was probably bruise-worthy.

"Says you, wench," Inuyasha mutters back, tucking his arms into his suikan like he couldn't care less. I hiss at him once more, indiscreetly pointing to my knee for emphasis, but he just growls back—before it's killed by his nose scrunching up again. I shake my head before taking a seat at the couch beside my brother, who gives me a puzzled look when I begin lightly massaging my knee with a pissed expression while Inuyasha tries to ignore me.

Wait— I turn back to Inuyasha with a bewildered, astonished look.

Before I can actually say anything, though—or even acknowledge his weird face in response to my own—Kazuko comes back into the room with a smile and tray full of teacups. "Here's the tea!" she says, repeating her words from yesterday as she serves it once more. When I'm handed my cup, I thank her before taking a sip, realizing I'd only held it in my hands last time I visited. Though I don't mind it and it's actually pretty good, I decide Miroku was right: Sango's tea is probably the best I will ever have.

Kazuko obviously doesn't serve Inuyasha, who's still regarding me oddly, but after Souta takes a drink of it, he says, "This is really good, ma'am. Is this a family recipe?"

"Heavens no," Kazuko says, stunned though flattered by my brother's comment. I'm not even sure where it came from, given Souta typically doesn't compliment people so politely, even if it's Tsuyu (he's not rude—he's just usually not that considerate), but he doesn't give off any hints as to why he said it. "But I appreciate your words, Souta-kun," Hitomi's mother continues, oblivious as to how out-of-character this is for him. "Oh, and call me Ogawa-san, will you? 'Ma'am' feels too formal for me."

Souta nods, Inuyasha's ears are flicking to the bedroom beside us, and around this time, I feel it's right to ask my client, "Pardon me for interrupting…but what specifically has happened since my last visit?"

Kazuko perks up when I address her before her eyes cast themselves to her daughter's bedroom door. "Nothing has happened since you left—and that's why I'm feeling a bit on edge," she confesses, wringing her hands in her apron. "I was actually surprised when I went in there last night and this morning with some water for Hitomi, and nothing came flying my way." Clueless to how my mind taking notes over this matter, Kazuko pauses and regards me with tentative, yet stern eyes. "Higurashi-san… What is really happening? I heard you say Makoto-kun's name…"

Souta gulps beside me, unaware of what exactly went down the day before, but I simply inform her, "Your daughter's ex-boyfriend's spirit has been having trouble move on because he feels he has unfinished business with Hitomi-chan. I'm planning to go in there today to convince him that Hitomi did know he loved her since both you and her peers have been saying their relationship was complicated in that aspect."

Kazuko nods, and the room goes silent for a moment outside of Inuyasha's idle sniffing. Maybe my comment was too professional, but I think this sort of quiet is coming from the fact that there's no more to say—that with each second we spend speaking in here, we're wasting time that could be spent saving Hitomi. Hell, wasn't I the one complaining about my lack of time earlier?

I'm either a hypocrite or complete idiot.

Inwardly chastising myself, I stand up and bow shortly to Kazuko, gaining everyone's attention, including Inuyasha, who has seemed practically bored out of his mind these past few minutes. "Kazuko-san," I say suddenly, earning everyone's attention, "you were working on pipes of some sort, weren't you?" Hesitant at first, probably wondering where I'm going with this, she nods slowly, and I grin brightly before suggesting, "Why doesn't Souta help you out? He went over piping in Home Economics back at his school in Kyoto… He should know how to fix whatever problem it is you're having."

While Kazuko gets this excited look on her face and praises me for my "wonderful idea", Souta glares at me for offering him up for labor when we both knew he secretly wanted to see me work. I give an almost unnoticeable shrug in return, not bothering to tell him whatever ideas he thought I had to use him as bait have vanished dramatically. However, his shoulders slump and he releases a deep breath at seeing Kazuko's enthusiasm, probably forfeiting whatever idea of resistance he'd thought up.

When Kazuko and Souta are out of sight—my brother giving me glares on his way out—Inuyasha turns to me with a very confused facial expression. "Why the hell did ya send him away?" he asks. "Didn't we bring him along so he could do the dirty work in the first place?"

"Maybe you thought that's why I brought him," I say with a raised eyebrow, "but I wanted him here because, well, I knew he'd be able to help distract Kazuko. And considering how worried she was overhearing everything last time, I figured a distraction would be best for today."

At seeing Inuyasha's disapproving look, I shrug. Who knows more about how women work here? The centuries old spirit who's emotionally constipated, or me, who—although terrible with people—has been around them more?

"Let's just go talk to the kid," Inuyasha mutters, walking into Hitomi's room. I huff—since when is he calling the shots?—but follow anyway.

Inside, Kazuko's words are proven true: nothing in Hitomi's room has been moved around, and there's no sign of Makoto's anger spiking and causing any damage to the walls, items, etc. Nothing has changed—even Makoto is still sitting next to Hitomi, looking down at her like he was before Inuyasha and I came in yesterday. But even now, his head doesn't pop up, and after a few moments, I realize he must be in deep thought, either over his relationship with Hitomi, what's been happening these past few weeks, or both.

Did something I say yesterday inspire this, or was it my mere appearance that made him begin rethinking things?

I don't want to interrupt his pondering, but we can't just stand around here, waiting for him to finish. I open my mouth—

"Hey, brat—stop bein' creepy and starin' at the girl."

Well, that was easy.

Makoto jerks up, coming to when he sees loudmouth Inuyasha—giving those dog ears a weird look, as if he still can't believe they exist—and then he spots me standing by the inu-hanyou's side. "Uh, sorry," he says, and for a moment, I'm blinded by the sudden show of manners he's having. "I was just thinking about things."

Before Inuyasha can say anything stupid, I smile and ask him, "Would you mind if I sat next to you, Makoto-kun?" His lips part, and he's probably hesitant at first, but he finally nods, so I walk over and take the empty spot on the other side of Hitomi. Choosing my words carefully despite his current, uncharacteristic nature, I ask, "Would you mind if I was wondering what you were thinking about, too?"

Sighing, he shakes his head. He doesn't say anything, though, so I wait for him to speak while Inuyasha hmphs and plops down beside me, somehow going unnoticed by the boy who was terrified of his presence just a day ago.

"I've been thinking about…all of this," Makoto admits, gesturing his arms to Hitomi's bedroom, sort of confusing about what he means until he clarifies, "My feelings, our relationship, how we meet, how I died, how I've been here since then…" His eyes soften. "I wanted to tell Hitomi how I loved her hair—but it just didn't feel right, so I bought her a comb with something like topaz in it. She accepted it, but I never realized until now…"

He pauses and says nothing after that. Even though I would like to think I'm patient, I eventually lose it when my nerves start being eaten away by curiosity or urgency. I almost speak up to ask, "Until now…what?" but then I feel Inuyasha's hand on my shoulder, which makes me look at him with questioning eyes, especially since he's probably even more impatient than me. An amber gaze meets my own, and even though he only whispers my name—shockingly enough—and shakes his head in response, I feel something clasp in my throat that stops me anyway.

The silence feels never-ending until Makoto finally speaks again. "I never realized none of my gifts mattered to Hitomi like I thought they did. I thought they were what kept her around—it was the only way I ever kept my friends. But I never thought…that smile she wore when I gave them to her was forced." Here, Makoto closes his eyes and says, "I actually thought she cared about those things."

My mouth opens again to say something, but another glance from Inuyasha silences me all over again. I don't know why he's suddenly thinking about things more than I am, what the meaning behind his actions are, but I do find myself helpless to follow them, allowing Makoto to talk and stay quiet as he pleases.

"I didn't know why Hitomi broke up with me. I just kept thinking maybe, I didn't give her enough to show I cared," the boy confesses. A sad, wry smirk crossing his lips. "But she never cared about that, did she? When I was so bad with words—when I couldn't tell her I understood how much she missed her dad when he was away—they were what mattered most to her because…Hitomi didn't read in-between the lines. She didn't understand that I really cared for her because I wasn't actually there for her—I never showed comfort through anything but stuff—everything she never cared about." He paused before he continues, his voice more small, "She's never known how much I loved her, and now I can't even tell her."

Meaning—my eyes widen—that Makoto isn't intentionally keeping her this way…

Words escape my mouth before I can stop and pile them back down my throat. "That's why you're here now," I state, and his head rises again. "You just want to be there for her now, to help her cope with your death, right?"

When he nods faintly, I feel like we're finally going somewhere—like I'm in control of things again. Regaining whatever confidence I lost when Inuyasha held me back, I tackle the situation head first. "Makoto-kun," I begin slowly as to avoid any objects being thrown at my face randomly, "as much as I don't like saying it…Hitomi-chan doesn't know you're here for her. But her family and friends are—except they haven't been able to help her because of your feelings. They've been unintentionally making her sleep like this ever since you came and found her."

Makoto opens his mouth to argue, thankfully with words instead of blunt, sharp items, but then closes it, as if realizing it's pointless. I feel somewhat bad until he agrees, "That'd make more sense than my death bringing her into shock."

Suddenly, sensitive, careful Inuyasha snorts, and I resist the urge to reach over and slap him across the face or rip out his hair with my bare hands. Violent, possibly, but the idea of such good progress being ruined by one person's screw up would be my patience's end.

Makoto merely glares at my companion, which I'm grateful for. It seems he truly has calmed down from yesterday, and I think right now, the boy we're interacting with is the one Hitomi knew—give or take some maturity. "Even if Hitomi was awake…would she see me?"

"Probably, if she woke up now," I inform him. "If she were never connected to you in this way, though… No, she wouldn't see you. As far as I know, Hitomi isn't a reibai such as myself or a yuurei such as Inuyasha—she wouldn't see you if you weren't the one making her…this way."

"That's why Ogawa-san and Kazuko-san came in without acknowledging me…" He gulps, I think coming to face with the facts he's been given, before sighing. "I could've had anything I wanted," he muses aimlessly, "but Hitomi… She was all that and more—and she wouldn't let me have her."

I remain still for a moment while Makoto grieves, choosing not to reassure him that Hitomi did love him—because now that would be seen as disagreeing with him, which could result in another outburst. "Makoto-kun…" He turns to me, and I state caringly, "Maybe I don't fully understand; maybe I don't truly know what has happened, but…I think it's time you move on—let both her and yourself heal and be happy again."

Makoto looks at Hitomi, then back to me in pain. "Leaving her…"

And even though it's two words, I know what he's saying. "It's hard to leave those you love behind," I tell him understandingly. "It's even harder to let them go, especially when you feel they were never in your reach to begin with." Makoto's eyes shine, and if I weren't so knowledgeable about ghosts, I'd think he's going to cry. "But letting them go shows your strength—and how much you've cared for them all along."

Our eyes meet for a moment, then his dark orbs look away, as if eye contact is too hard to bear. Quiet passes over us, but when he speaks again after softly clearing his throat, I give him my full attention.

"Do you think she'll be happy?" he asks me in a tiny, worried whisper. "That she'll find someone to love…who'll love her more than I did?"

"Yes," I confess, preferring to be honest with my answer, even if it pains him. "She will find her future husband one day, have children, have a job—that's inevitable. We all move on from loss eventually, in some way or another." He nods, accepting this as fact. "But I know, Makoto…that even when she's old, she'll always remember her first love."

This comment seems to be undoing as he bows his head, holding it as he takes deep breaths before bringing it back up to again to meet my eyes—the anguished, hurt look now gone, replaced with something resolute and mature. "Thank you for everything…Kagome-san."

I blink in surprise before realizing he must've heard Inuyasha say my name earlier. I nod, giving him a smile he decides to return. When Inuyasha looks at me, he expresses all that I'm feeling within this moment. Finally, I think with relief and a tilt of my lips.

Finally.

The moment she blinks and her stunning eyes begin to focus on the ceiling, the room is filled with an odd sense of calm. How Makoto's face turns soft, his own gaze following suit. How she looks over to him and sits up rapidly, evidently stunned by his presence since, last she heard, he was dead. Then a bittersweet smile crosses his lips, and I officially know the end has arrived.

After weeks of unrest, Makoto will move on.

"Goodbye…Hitomi," he says gently for once, and her eyes widen from the lack of an honorific. She seems to want to say something, but can't say the words. And even when she does seem to find them, Makoto just shakes his head at her while a small smile, as if he knows what she'll say—and I think he does when he whispers to her, "I'll always love you more."

Then it feels like a dream when, after only two days of knowing him, we watch as he slowly dissipates before giving way to air.

From where she sits next to me, Hitomi's lips tremble, and my heart gives a small pang when she suddenly notices me, looking for answers. "Makoto-kun…" Her whisper is full of anguish. "Onee-san, what just happened? What's been happening?"

She's breaking into pieces in front of us, so I give her a small touch of comfort to her bicep, silently assuring her everything will be okay. "It's a long story," I tell her kindly, "but believe me when I say he's finally at peace after a long suffering."

Her lips twist in a terrible way and her eyes squeeze tight before she collapses against my chest, and Inuyasha watches while I hold her as tears of confusion, grief, and misery catch up to her.

And for once, even though it's on the inside, I feel myself crying for a dead man, too.

/~\*/~\*/~\*/~\*/~\

"Thank you again, Higurashi-san," Kazuko says, bowing the lowest she can go to me, making me just as flustered as Sango did during my visit yesterday. "Your help… We are forever in gratitude for your help, and to the Kami for leading you to us."

I briefly want to state how really it is a possible illusion that lead me here, and Yue-Laou himself had said the Kami have bigger things to do than take care of just a few people at once, but the urge goes away at the next moment. Instead, I bow in return to her, saying, "Thank you, Kazuko-san, for letting my brother and I into your home." A short few seconds pass before I begin to feel the formality fade away, and I ask, "You know you can just call me Kagome, right?"

Kazuko laughs. "Right," she says. "Of course."

I manage to return her smile before looking to where her daughter is standing, red eyes unfocused. Souta seems to shuffle around a bit at my side, and he doesn't even notice when I give him a questioning look before he makes his way over to her, catching everyone's eye while he's at it.

Oh, boy.

Inuyasha, who's been oddly quiet ever since the scene with Makoto in Hitomi's bedroom, groans—the first noise I've heard from him in half an hour. I look at him inquisitively, and he questions with furrowed eyebrows, "The runt wouldn't 'hit on' her, would he?"

Somewhat proud of teaching him and Shippou that phrase, I ask for specification, "Right now?" Inuyasha nods, and my eyes narrow at the anxious Souta. I at least hope he has enough common sense to realize Hitomi doesn't need to go on a date right after seeing her ex pass on. "He better not," I mumble a bit too loudly. Kazuko gives me an odd look for presumably talking to air, but I pretend not to notice until she turns back to my brother. Once her attention is gone from me, I see the short distance between Souta and Hitomi, which makes one small detail about them both very obvious.

"Inuyasha?" I begin casually, and he gives me a sort of suspicious look that I don't meet, my gaze focused instead on the string binding the two junior high students together. "Do you think soul mates exist and have very odd ways of meeting?" Because, to be honest, I never quite imagined my brother meeting his twin flame this way.

And I don't know why, but this makes Inuyasha practically choke on air, which brings another question into mind. "Also, I was wondering—"

"Yeah, wench?" he replies to my whisper without a second thought, and I resist the urge to stomp my penny loafer into his bare foot. See—there it is again.

"Can you explain to me whenever I've been mad at you since…" Since Hojo Akitoki's death… "Well, you haven't been rocking on the floor, choking to death because of how I smell like cinnamon?"

A moment of quiet passes with me staring at Inuyasha, awaiting a response, and Inuyasha staring into space, probably trying to think of answer. Finally, he must've come up with nothing, because he turns and begins sprinting down the street without a word or glance my way.

What in the sixth hell…? Any explanation would've done, but instead, the bastard just walks out without even a word as to why things have suddenly changed? Because when I first met this guy, he'd practically die whenever I got pissed, but when I get back from the pond, from defeating the kappa in general, he's suddenly immune? What the HELL?

"Sis, you ready to go?" Souta's voice enters my thoughts as his hand waves annoyingly in front of my face. Redirecting my irritation towards Inuyasha to my brother, Souta raises an eyebrow and explains, "You were glaring and looking confused at nothing there for a second, and Hitomi and Kazuko-san have already gone back inside."

Oh. Well, alright then.

I rub my temples and shake my head before deciding to forget about the bipolar hanyou haunting my family shrine. "What did you say to Hitomi?" I ask as Souta and I begin making our way down the street, though nowhere as quick as Inuyasha, instead taking our time and letting the sunset envelope us peacefully.

"I just gave her the homework she's missed and told her to call me, Satoru-kun, or one of her friends if she needed help with it," he says, but I can tell by his voice there's more. After giving him an expecting look, my brother sighs and admits, "And I may have told her if she needed someone to talk to about Makoto or anything that happened just now, she could call me about that, too."

Just like I didn't tell our cousin, I don't tell Souta what I've seen, either, preferring things to work out by themselves (making me, overall, a terrible matchmaker). However, from what I've learned about fate and relationships so far, I wonder why they had to meet this way specifically and how their relationship will play out from here. It's really something to think, but I save it for another time, deciding to focus on the discussion at hand instead.

I breathe a sigh of relief. Thankfully, he did pull through for me and have enough common sense to realize a new boyfriend is not what Hitomi needs right now. "And what about Kazuko? You were actually polite to her tonight," I tease.

Souta's eyes narrow at me, not enjoying the joke. "Well, first of all, I didn't want to get kicked out because I thought I could actually help you with the ghost this time." Or run away like you have previously, I think sarcastically. "I still hate you for that, by the way," he reminds me with a frown.

"Oh, boohoo for you," I drone, bringing the back of my hand to my forehead dramatically, as if this whole situation were a tragedy. "All your hopes and dreams—shattered because of your elder sister, the big bad wolf."

"Screw you," Souta mumbles with averted eyes and a reddened face, making me genuinely laugh for the first time in a long while. However, his face quickly turns serious, sobering me up. "To be honest, Nee-chan… Ogawa-san just looked really vulnerable. And when I talked to her later… I don't know. I think she just felt helpless, like she had no effect on the situation at all." He licks his lips and blurts out, "Being with her reminded me of being with Tsuyu when you were gone."

I pause mid-walk, and Souta follows suit, looking at me with his matching eyes. "That look Ogawa-san had as she did laundry, even talked with you… It might've looked happy, but it reminded me of Tsuyu when you always left home to…do your job. Like even though she was smiling, she wanted to change things—she wanted her daughter back where she belonged."

It feels like all activity in my chest has stopped as I regard Souta with blank eyes. Even when his words ring strong and true, his posture is insecure and tense, and something about this whole conversation bothers me to no end.

"C'mon, twerp," I say, trying to steer us away from facing something we're not ready to face—what we've overlooked for years. "I have to make dinner, remember?"

Souta, though hesitant, listens to me, and we both quicken our step. Although I know the topic's still bothering him, it's bothering me, too. And whenever it's brought up, it never feels like it's the right time to mention that no matter how much we care for each other, my profession will always strain the relationship between Tsuyu and I. So, I hold back from admitting to something I don't like, letting this endless cycle in which no one is pleased continue.

However, that's the least of my worries.

A/N: I'll confess: this chapter got to me emotionally, but I think that was maybe necessary, given the fact she realized too late she was related to this case in more ways than one.

I hoped to give insight to Souta's character in the end and, if it weren't already recognized, the underlying tension between Tsuyu and Kagome. And if you're curious, I didn't want Souta to address Kazuko as "oba-san" because it feels like I've been using too many honorifics as it is, and yes, I purposely made Inuyasha not allergic to Kagome these past few chapters. Oh, whatever could it all mean? :O

Chapter 11: "Awkward Mournings" is coming soon; thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter! ^.^