A/N: Hello you guys! I am so happy with the reviews I get for this story! I don't have time to reply to all of them but rest assured your questions will be answered. Just another thing!

Sesshy is not the mystery guy. He has another role in this story! Just read and in time you will understand.

Disclaimer: I – Inuyasha= real life.

Claimer: Takeshi is my character!

Chapter 11: Dirt and a mystery man

I walked up the steps as I thought over the what he said. I knew he was seriously considering what I had told him. That enough made my heart soar. I opened my door and saw that my family sat in the living room. I leaned against the doorway.

"Hey you guys." I smiled. My mother glanced behind and stood up.

"Kagome! You're home early!" She walked over and hugged me. I just shrugged.

"Mom, I have a a favor to ask." I slipped off my shoes.

"What is it?" She asked, tilting her head. I bit my lip as I thought of a way to word my question. Might as well be blunt about it.

"Can Inuyasha come to the graves with us? His mother's is there." I silently pleaded with my eyes. She looked thoughtful, considering my words, I hoped. She softly smiled.

"I think it would be alright. Your father always said, the more the merrier. Besides, I think it would be good if he had you to go with him to his own mother's grave." My mother put a hand on my shoulder. I gave her a quick kiss, hugging her tight.

"Thanks mom. You're the best!"

"Aren't I?" She laughed.

I turned away and climbed the stairs. I smiled to myself at what tomorrow would have in store for me. I would skip work to go and sneak into Kikyo's house, hopefully to find something juicy.

She was so going down.

I woke up bouncing out of my bed. I ran to my closet and grabbed my zebra-print shirt and my skinny jeans, donning them in fifteen seconds flat. I was just so jazzed for today. Not to mention I would see Inuyasha. But then again, I wondered what I would say to him. Would I be able to say anything?

A horn honked outside.

"Damn!" I shouted. I has totally forgotten about the whole ride-to-school thing. Now I had to face him with no preparation. I breathed in and out.

"Mom! I'm leaving!" I called out, running down the stairs. My mother poked her head out.

"Alright! Have a good day, Kagome!" I smiled to myself. She had no idea how much fun today would be. I reminded myself to breathe as I slid into the passenger seat..

"So what's up?" He asked casually. I let out a sigh at the easy topic. I shrugged non-chalantly

"Nothing much." He just nodded and looked away. Though I wanted to talk I thought the silence was best. There was no telling what I would say. Suddenly, my phone rang, breaking the silence we had built up to that point. I glanced at the collar ID.

"Kagome! I have great news! I get my car back today, so I can take us to Kikyo's house." She paused, "It's just that I'll miss school and Miroku is taking me. So he won't be there today, ok?" I closed my eyes, not really knowing what to say. I huffed and blew my bang form my face.

"Alright, I guess. But where are we going to meet? I mean, I gotta know where I have to be," I reasoned with her. I could literally hear the wheels turning in her head.

"You're house?"

"No. My mom knows I work after school," I bit my lip. This was not going well. I didn't notice Inuyasha leaning in, listening to my conversation until he became a part of it.

"You could spend some time with me, since you're not going to work." He glanced at me, his gold eyes penetrating. I froze. What was I supposed to say? Yes? No? Maybe? God, I needed to work this out.

"Meet me at The Echo, ok?" The Echo was a place Sango and I used as our hangout. It really wasn't much more than a secluded spot near an old run-down apartment complex, but it worked. We just named it that because, well, it just sounded cool.

"But who's going to take you?" She asked, her confusion prominent in her voice. I looked at Inuyasha when I answered.

"Oh, Inuyasha will take me." Suddenly the school came to view, "Hey Sango, I have to go. See you later!"

"But Kago–"

I snapped the phone shut and smiled sweetly to Inuyasha.

"You won't mind, will you?"

He smiled, showing off his pearly whites. (I wonder what toothpaste he used )

"Of course not," He parked in the parking lot. "But I do have one condition," I narrowed my eyes at him suspiciously.

"And that would be?"

He took a moment before he spoke. "Skip the whole day with me," He smiled mischievously. I gulped. I'd never skipped a period, let alone a whole day, but I didn't want to blow this chance with him either, so I chose the one best for me.

"Deal," I tilted my head to the side as he pulled out the parking lot. "Where are we going?" I asked, after he got on the highway. He just smiled.

"Somewhere I've been wanting to go with you."

That comment made, he turned back to watch the street. What did he mean by that? He just kept throwing me signals and I just couldn't keep up. My heart thudded audibly in my chest. I crossed my arms, a little frustrated. Who wouldn't?

Finally, we reached a dirt road. He turned on it and I watched the surroundings fleetingly passing. By the glimpses I got, I could tell this area was beautiful. At first, I saw only green but then I distinguished the different colors. Blues, reds, pinks and every other color I could identify, were present. Then we passed a river, the water crystal blue. I gaped.

We finally stopped in front of a small cottage. I raised an eyebrow as I unbuckled.

"Inuyasha? Where are we?"

He smiled. "This is where my mom and I used to come. I grew up in this house." I glanced at the house again and saw smoke rising from the chimney.

"Does someone live there?" I asked, pointing to the chimney.

"Only the old caretaker. My mom hired her, but she's like family, really." He walked away toward the house. Not wanting to be left behind, I quickly ran to his side. He knocked on the door and waited. I heard footsteps and then saw the door creak open a bit.

"Ah, Inuyasha. Ye are back. What a pleasant surprise." She smiled. Inuyasha smirked.

"Keh, old hag, why wouldn't I?" The comment was not made to insult, as I saw the smile on the old woman as she opened the door wider for us to enter.

"Ye will always be the same, Inuyasha." She sighed and then glanced at me. "And who is this young lady?" I blushed a little as Inuyasha put an arm on my shoulder.

"Her name's Kagome, Kaede." He smiled and his hand moved to my waist. "Do you approve?" I glanced at Inuyasha, shocked. What?

"Why, of course Inuyasha." She sat down and Inuyasha turned his attention to me.

"What did you meant by appro–"

"C'mon. I want to show you something," He pulled me with him as he exited. I was flustered, and couldn't think straight. He smirked at my expression, but didn't slow down. "Inuyasha! Where are you taking me?" I asked, I having enough of my wits back to ask where we were going. He stopped and turned to fully face me.

"Just wait for a minute or two then you'll see." His eyes conveyed emotions I didn't understand, but I nodded anyway. We only had to walk for a couple of minutes, when we finally came into view of something. We stood on a hill overlooking a valley, which was filled with different colors and the river I had seen earlier. For a brief moment, I felt like swimming in it. It was breath taking.

"Inuyasha," I gasped, "It's beautiful!" I ran down the hill, but suddenly stopped. I was inspired to do something I hadn't done since I was little. Inuyasha watched me with a peculiar expression as I laid down. I tugged at his jeans.

"C'mon! Do this with me!"

Inuyasha laughed and soon, we were both rolling down the hill. I didn't care if my clothes were getting dirty, I didn't care about anything. The minutes, the seconds that I spent with Inuyasha were priceless to me.

He made it down before I did, making me topple over him. He laughed.

"Well, Kagome . . ." He trailed off. My cheeks burned and I jumped off of him. He just sat up, crossing his legs. I turned away from him, scowling. "Aw, don't get mad at me, Kagome. I was just playing with you." I uncrossed my arms and huffed, sitting down next to him. We sat in silence for a while.

"Inuyasha, this is really pretty. How'd you find it?" I asked, finally tired of hearing only silence. Inuyasha shrugged.

"My mother and I used to come here a lot. Not even my dad knew about this place. But then again, he almost never came by," There was a bitterness in Inuyasha's voice. My eyebrows knitted up in confusion. I wonder why he felt that way. Suddenly, he stood up, grabbing my hand and lifting me up with him.

"There's still one more place. You'll like it." I tilted my head in curiosity. We walked a little farther until a little cottage came to view. We were right in front of it when Inuyasha suddenly halted. I was pulled back, since I had kept going. I turned to him.

"Inuyasha, what's wrong?"

His expression saddened, and his grip on my hand slacked. He breathed in deeply, staring at the cottage in front of us.

"This was our special place, my mom's and I. I haven't been here since the day she died."

I gasped slightly, suddenly understanding his pain. I squeezed his hand, conveying the assurance he needed. This place was special to him and if he was showing this to me then that must have meant I meant something to him too.

"Let's go." I walked in front of him slowly, turning back to see if he was okay with it. He nodded, and followed me inside.

It was a very cozy house to say the least. It had a fireplace, a small table and a couple of chairs. The couch was covered in a layer of dust but the view from the window was astonishing. Everything else was covered in sheets. I let go of Inuyasha's hand and put my hands on my hips.

"I guess we have to do some cleaning, huh?"

Inuyasha glanced at me sheepishly. "Sorry. I really meant I hadn't been here for a while."

It didn't take long for everything to get clean. Just a couple of dustings here and there, and the place looked marvelous. I had even found some tea bags in the cupboard, which I noticed was filled with expired food. I made a mental note to tell Inuyasha to clean it out. When the tea was done, I sat the mugs I had found and washed, on the table.

"Thanks Kagome, " Inuyasha muttered, taking a sip of the tea. I sat down and held the warm cup in my hand. I drummed my fingers on it. Then Inuyasha looked up.

"You can come here whenever you want, you know." He smiled.

"How? I don't even have a car." I pointed out. He just leaned back on the chair a bit, getting that cocky smile I was so used to.

"Then I guess that you're only ride is with me, since you not going to tell anyone about this place."

I pouted. "How do you know I won't tell anyone?" He reached over and took one of my hands.

"I just know. So don't prove me wrong okay?"

I giggled and pulled my hand back. "You know, Inuyasha, we don't really now much about each other." Which was true. The closest we had been was when we were in my room, at least until gramps had interrupted.

He nodded in agreement. "True. I propose we have an exchange."

"An exchange?"

He nodded. "You tell me something, like your favorite color, and I answer the same question." I nodded, understanding the concept. "I'll go first." He thought and then spoke. " My favorite animals are dogs. Love them. Would even die for mine,"

I raised an eyebrow. He shrugged. "Hey, they're the best friends in the world!"

"Yeah, but I like cats."

He nodded, but I could tell he only did it because he didn't want to upset me.

I shifted in my seat. "Okay, my turn." I paused. " My favorite food would have to be sushi," I smiled.

Inuyasha gagged. "Sushi? Who eats raw fish?" He asked, a disgusted tone dripping in his voice. I just smiled and looked up at him as I sipped more tea.

"What, you're not man enough?" I teased. I saw Inuyasha frown and I couldn't help but smile wider.

"I am so a man. I could probably eat things you wouldn't even look at."

"Except Sushi."

He pouted. It was so cute. "I'll tell you what. One day we will go and have sushi and you will see me golf those little rascals faster than you!" He declared. I just laughed and waved his declaration off.

"Yeah, I'd like to see that."

He smiled. "It's a deal." He moved his mug to the side, already finished. "My favorite color is red." He crossed his arms as he waited for my answer.

I gulped a little. The thought of my favorite color, green, made me think of my father, who was the whole reason I had liked it in the first place.

"Green." I muttered softly, my gaze fixed on my half-filled mug. I could see the cracks on it.

"Kagome, are you okay?" I heard Inuyasha ask.

I lifted my gaze to meet his. "It's nothing," But as Inuyasha kept staring, I couldn't help but tell him. "Green was my father's favorite color. He's the whole reason I like it."

He eyes softened. "I'm sorry, Kagome."

I waved the comment away. "No, it's okay. It's just this is probably the first time I've said it out loud." I sighed. "I remember throwing everything green out of my closet in a huge fit." I looked out the window. "Scared the hell out of my mom. It's just that it was so hard."

I felt the lump form in my throat. "It just happened and I didn't know what to do. He was there a second, happy, laughing," The tears formed and they started to fall "And the next he was on the floor, bleeding, with five bullet wounds in his chest and head." I gasped, as the first sob tore threw. "I just sat there, didn't even scream."

I started to cry more loudly. I wanted to hit myself. I said I was okay. I didn't want to be weak. I tried so hard to keep these feelings deep down, not wanting any of them resurfacing. It was so bleak, the part of my life without my father. I had been young, too young to see a murder.

"Kagome . . ." I heard Inuyasha mutter. I felt his arms around me, hugging me tight. I couldn't help but turn to him, my only source of comfort. As the sobs raked through, I randomly thought about how Inuyasha had dealt with the death of his own mother. Had he cried? Was he still as raw, as hurt as me? Did he still dream about her the way I dreamed of my dad's death? I held on tighter, now the sobs subsiding.

"It's okay." He whispered in my ear. It tickled and sent a shiver down my spine. Suddenly, I took in our position. I pushed back a little, and sniffled, looking straight into Inuyasha's gaze. He wasn't repulsed, he probably even understood better than anyone how I felt.

He held me back a bit, to look into my face. "Are you okay now?" I nodded, embarrassed. He just gave me a kiss on my forehead, sending the butterflies in my stomach on a conga line. I blushed, and I knew he could tell, because he was smirking at me.

"Don't worry about being embarrassed. I know how hard it is and it's nice to have someone there for you."

I just stared.

"What time is it?" I asked, suddenly remembering the task Sango and I had. He checked his wrist.

"About 3:00" He glanced up. "Why?"

I stood up. "I said I'd meet Sango at our hangout." I threw my hands in the air. "It's so late, we'll never make it." I grabbed Inuyasha's hand and dragged him out. He complied and soon, we passed the flowers, the house where Kaede took care of the house.

"You know, you don't have to ditch me so fast." Inuyasha grumbled.

"I'm not ditching you on purpose. I have something very important to do." I gazed straight ahead.

"Seems like it," He muttered, his face going into a little pout. I turned my head toward him.

"We'll be together tomorrow." I said and I couldn't help but smile at the thought of being together.

"That," Inuyasha lifted his finger. "is what keeps me going."

I sighed at his comment. Really, was that what he felt?

"So how was the day with Inuyasha?" Sango asked, as we headed down the road in her newly fixed car. She glanced at me, smiling.

"Why don't we focus on the task at hand, and then I'll tell you, okay?"

"Aw, Kagome." She pouted. "Since when do you stick to a plan?"

I laughed. "Since it concerned Kikyo's demise."

We pulled up to a mansion, barely lit from the inside. We parked a couple of houses away, just to make sure no one saw us. The mansion had at least two wings.

"Which one is her room?" I asked, mouth agape. Sango just smiled.

"The guy who gave me the address said her room was the one with the balcony on it." She pointed to a window. "And the best was up there without being detected would be up the vine." We started to walk toward the house when something occurred to me.

"This guy seems to know everything about her." I said, "Even how to get in her room?"

Sango gave me a side-glance. "You think he's been taking lessons from Miroku?"

"That has it's possibilities."

We made it to the vine and started to climb up. We stepped onto the stone of the balcony with scratches, since the guy happened not mention that it was a thorny vine.

"Last time I trust someone who's in love with Kikyo." Sango muttered, looking at all of her scratches. She pulled out her flashlight from the bag she had brought up.

"Its time to get dirt." I pushed the doors open and we quietly tiptoed inside.

Her room was pure disaster. Her bed sheets were on the floor, as well as most of her clothes. It was as if a hurricane had blasted through here.

"Damn she's a slob." I whispered, stepping over the half-eaten pizza that I was sure I had seen something crawling on it. Sango nodded in agreement.

"It's like she has no maid service. I thought she was rich enough for that!" She exclaimed. "So where do we look?" She asked. I glanced around the room. Where could we start? Under her bed? No, I'd rather die than see what's under there. In her drawer's? Who would want to even look at her clothes? The only option left that made sense to me was the closet, though I had a feeling we'd find more than just dirt.

"The closet."

We stepped to the other side of the room, and I turned the knob on the closet. I turned on the light and gasped at what I saw.

The closet was like a mini mall.

The sheer size of it made me want to run back out and take the bed option. We'd never find anything before Kikyo came back. Sango's face told me she was thinking the same thing.

"What do we do now?" She asked.

I narrowed my eyes at the 'closet'. "We hunt."

It wasn't until after the first ten minutes when I heard Sango calling for me. I stood from where I was and followed the sound of her voice.

"What is it?" I called. She turned around, and waved me forward.

"Check this out!"

She pointed in a dimly lit room. For a second I didn't see anything, but as my eyes adjusted, I could see something inside. I walked in, Sango at my side.

"Whoa." I whispered. The whole room was covered in photos of Inuyasha. Even the roof has a couple of photos stuck on it.

Sango whistled in amazement. "This has to be more the single most obsessed thing I have ever seen," She pointed to the middle, where there was a bigger photo on Inuyasha with candles flickering in his face like a shrine. "She's crazy!"

I nodded. "Did you expect anything else?" I walked out the room. I didn't want to see how much she was obsessed with Inuyasha. I'd crush her to a pulp for even having one photo of him. But he wasn't mine to claim.

At least, not yet.

I fumbled on a rug and fell forward, landing face flat on the floor. Sango rushed after me.

"Are you okay, Kagome?" She helped me up. I nodded.

"Yeah." I rubbed my head. I looked up and I saw something.

A diary, one with a scribbled name on it. Kikyo's.

I picked it up and showed it to Sango. "This is her diary," I waved the book, "We don't need anything else," I smiled. Finally, my imbalance landed me something more than just a bruised face! I skimmed through it and saw that the last entry was dated from last year. "She won't miss it. She hasn't written in it for a while. We'll just borrow it." I pulled Sango and we found our way back to the entrance. I was about to open the door, when I heard voices.

"But daddy! Why can't I have guys over anymore?" I heard Kikyo's whiny voice. I lifted up a finger to my mouth to signal Sango not to talk.

"Because you need to keep image. People already know you're sleeping with half the town," Her father hissed. "And you have to focus on Inuyasha. We need him to fall for you." I pressed my ear to the door harder at the mention of Inuyasha.

"I'm trying, but Kagome keeps getting in the way!"

I heard a slap, and I recoiled from the sound.

"I don't want excuses. Just do as you're told!"

I heard shuffled footsteps and then there was silence. I glanced at Sango, wide-eyed. From her face, she was also shocked.

"Let's go." I whispered, opening the door and running out. We climbed the vine down again, not even bothering to acknowledge the scratches. We ran toward Sango's car and got in. We were breathing hard from the running and the adrenaline. We both looked at each other.

"We actually did it! We got her diary!" I pumped my fist in the air as Sango started the engine. It only took an hour, but I felt as if it took days.

"Let's go back to my house. I can make copies." Sango suggested. When I shook my head, she looked at me incredulously.

"We only need one entry," I explained. "And I have the perfect one."

Kikyo, the world will finally know you for what you really are.

Later, when we had finished making copies, I decided to walk back home. It wasn't that far. Besides, the nice cool air would do me good. As I started on the sidewalk, I began to think about the next day. The dress I would wear was hanging in my closet. I'd probably would have to wear those shoes that always hurt my toes, but I wouldn't complain. It was all for my father, anyway.

"Why is a beautiful girl like you walking alone on these streets?"

I turned around, suddenly facing a tall man. He looked young enough to be my age, though. He had short dark midnight colored hair. His eyes were a deep violet, and they immediately held my gaze.

"Why if it isn't the gorgeous Kagome Higurashi! What a pleasant surprise," He murmured, closing the distance between us. I backed away, not trusting him. His face looked almost hurt.

"I won't hurt you, Kagome."

I frowned. "Who the hell are you?" I yelled. He walked up closer, but I held my ground. I had karate training, but a standard hit to the groin and he'd be down long enough for me to escape.

"My name is Takeshi Terra," He took something from his pocket and put it in my palm. I didn't glance at it. "I'll see you at school," He smiled and walked off, leaving me with whatever I had in my palm. I opened it and gasped at what I held.

A Monkshood.

A/N: Mwahahahaha! I am so evil for leaving you guys there! But now you know who's been leaving the flowers in her room. So what will Kagome do now? I don't know yet, but I will! Anyway, this is way longer than I thought it would be but there's a reason for that. I will be on a camping trip for three days this week. I will not be updating on Thursday, Friday, or Saturday. This will chapter will just have to last you until next time ok? I want reviews though!

8/27/11

Edit: Another chapter edited! I hope you guys enjoy the suspense in the story! Au reviour!

~Daichi