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"You know, a dog can snap you out of any kind of bad mood that you're in faster than you can think of."

-Jill Abramson

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The Good Dog

Chapter #26

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So, demons in her time was a thing.

A week later, Kagome was still trying to wade through her mixed emotions regarding that particular revelation. She thought of all the demons she had befriended in the past and took comfort in the knowledge that they might just be in hiding instead of just gone. Unfortunately the flip side to that particular coin was that, well, there were demons in her time. Suddenly she realized that home wasn't the haven she had always believed it to be.

Around her neck, the jewel shards burned - bright and heavy - beneath her shirt.

The demon hadn't said anything about them, but she knew he had to have felt their presence. She was both surprised and relieved that he hadn't demanded them. Though, in retrospect, she couldn't help but feeling completely baffled. If he hadn't come for the shards, why had he come at all? Surely he hadn't just decided to take a nightly stroll through a shrine and stare at her dog.

Right?

She gave Yusuke a sidelong glance, unsurprised to find him scowling at nothing. The canine had been irritable and down right sulky the past few days. Kagome had thought perhaps the demon's visit had put him on edge, but she really wasn't so sure. He hadn't acted like the demon was a real threat. When she had woken up to find him gone she had panicked - a cold weight settling in her gut as she discovered the front door open.

She wasn't sure what prompted her to grab her bow, let alone her arrows. Maybe, subconsciously, she had sensed the demon's presence. Maybe years of time travel had trained her to associate anxiety with battle. Regardless, when she stumbled on them she was glad to have the familiar weight in her palm; even if keeping the string drawn was way harder than she would have cared to admit.

Yusuke had been all snarls, but no bite. She thought of the night Inuyasha snuck into her room and got his arm shredded for his trouble. She didn't doubt that he would have attacked even if it hadn't been the hanyou's human night. When it came to protecting her, she knew - she just knew - he would fight. Even if it was an impossible battle, even if there was no hope of winning, Yusuke would fight.

The others would probably scold her something fierce if they knew she was putting so much weight on Yusuke's judgement (Inuyasha especially), but she trusted his instincts. That he hadn't outright attacked the demon convinced her that she wasn't in any immediate danger. Really, even his growls sounded more cross than threatening.

She sighed, leaning back in her chair and staring up at her ceiling with a frown, fingers fiddling with the chain around her neck. Whether their recent visitor had violent intentions or not, one thing was certain - she needed to get into fighting shape pronto. Where there was one demon there was sure to be more; even if they had become scarily adept at hiding in her modern world. No one was there to protect her except herself and, well, Yusuke, but she really couldn't depend on him in a fight against a demon. She didn't want to. She had the power – she knew she had the power - she just needed to get better at accessing it.

But how? She knew she sucked at meditating, but it wasn't for lack of trying. Because she did, she totally did. It was just that it didn't ever really seem to do anything but make her more frustrated. Which, according to Miroku, wasn't exactly the zen she was suppose to be aiming for.

She huffed, pushing herself away from her desk and closing her laptop (because after a week of navigating through a frustrating web of search results it was becoming maddeningly clear that Google was no help whatsoever). Time to break out the big guns. And probably some face masks. Who knew when the last time Grandfather's collection had been cleaned out? She'd probably suffocate on dust the moment she opened the door.

She nudged Yusuke with her foot. "Well, you wanna come with me to look through a bunch of cryptic old scrolls?"

The grumbling growl and slanted look he gave her made it pretty clear what he thought of the idea. Still, he stood with an aggravated snort to follow her out.

She smiled at him sweetly, scratching him behind the ear in thanks as she opened her bedroom door. As she started down the stairs she idly wondered if she should try her luck at sneaking into the archival shed or if she should just be vague in her request for more training material. She hadn't told her family about their demonic visitor. Mostly because she didn't want them to be afraid in their own home; but also because she didn't want them to be afraid for her. They already worried enough, especially with her recent injury. Things were only just starting to feel normal again. She didn't want to bring back the stifling tension that came hand in hand with their concern.

She could hear her mother talking in the kitchen. Her voice was low enough to where she couldn't hear the words, but Kagome could tell by her polite tone that she must be talking to someone outside the family. It wasn't anything unusual really. The home phone was in the kitchen, and her mother often made a habit of making any necessary phone calls while she was preparing or cleaning up after meals. So when, halfway down the stairs, Kagome heard a second - unfamiliar - voice she nearly missed a step in her surprise.

For a brief moment she paused, a tickle of paranoia whispering 'demon', but then Yusuke was bounding down the steps with a urgency that would've concerned her had it not been for the way his tail wagged the whole way down.

Cautiously, she followed - pausing at the kitchen threshold to avoid interrupting (and to get a good look at their guest without judgment). Yusuke waited there with her, his tail spontaneously tapping against the floor and pretty much dashing any hope of making a silent entry. The only thing Kagome could really discern about the other woman sitting across from her mother was her faded pink hair, before her mother noticed their presence.

"Oh, Kagome!" The expression she wore was odd - as if there was a wince hiding behind her polite smile. "I didn't realize you were home, dear."

Kagome blinked, toes curling against the floor as she looked between her mother and their guest nervously. Mama knew she had been upstairs - she had brought her up some snacks just a little over half an hour ago. The older woman was watching her critically. The severity of her expression made her think of last years math teacher, but her clothes seemed too casual for her to have been sent from the school. "Um, yeah. I was just upstairs, uh, studying."

Her mother gestured to their guest. "This is Miss Genkai."

Kagome waited for her mother to say more, expecting some sort of explanation of who the woman was besides just a name - and only a first name at that. When it became apparent that Mrs. Higurashi had nothing else to add, she gave a short bow. "It is nice to meet you, Miss Genkai. I am Kagome Higurashi. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude."

The older woman made a sound in the back of her throat, looking bored. "Hard to intrude when you're the one I came for. Sit down."

The one she came for? She shot her mother a surprised glance, but couldn't interpret anything past anxiety in her expression as she gestured to the empty chair beside her. Unsure of what else to do, and somewhat appeased by Yusuke's enthusiastic response to the stranger – she could still hear his tail thumping against the floor and the dopey look on his face couldn't be mistaken for anything but a grin – she sat beside her mother.

Genkai laid her palm up on the table, and when Kagome merely stared back at her she openly rolled her eyes. "Your hand, girl."

"Oh." So that was a totally weird request, but sure. Why not. She placed her hand in her waiting one, nearly yelping when the aged fingers grasped her wrist – evaluating the open palm with a critical eye. "Your hands aren't soft. That's good. It means you're not unaccustomed to work."

Yeah, ok, no. What the hell was going on? Work? Why did it feel like she was trying out for some kind of feudal era human trafficking stint? Kagome fed some miko into her palm, feeling her heart beating nervously against her ribs.

Instead of jerking away (as Kagome had half expected) Genkai's lip curled into a disappointed sneer. "I'm not a demon, girl. Can't you sense that?"

Kagome squeaked a hasty apology, blushing to her roots as she snatched her hand back and brought it to her chest. "Sorry! I just, I can't, I -" Her shoulders sagged, feeling mortified. "I don't know how."

The elderly woman scoffed. "Then my stupid apprentice was right - you do need help."

She cringed, recognizing the (barely) veiled insult but unable to disagree. "Apprentice?" she echoed. "Wait, you don't mean that demon?"

Behind her, Mrs. Higurashi started. "Demon? What demon?"

Crap.

Kagome visibly winced, turning to her mother with a sheepish smile. "Uh, there might have been a demon that came over last week? He didn't try to kill me or anything!" Her nose pinched. "Mostly he was just rude."

Mrs. Higurashi looked at her as if she had grown another head. "And where were we when this happened?! Why didn't you come get us?!"

Kagome sank into her chair, wishing it would magically swallow her up and save her from the look her mother was casting. "Um, you were kinda, you know, in bed? Asleep?"

Her mother's face darkened in what promised to be a long, thorough scolding, but as she opened her mouth to deliver it, their guest casually interrupted.

"That was Hiei. He's a moody little shit, but he's on our side." She took a sip of her tea, before eyeing Kagome thoughtfully. "Though I suspect you figured that out since you didn't try to barbecue him."

Kagome shrugged, not really sure she'd go that far, but... "He didn't attack me and, well, Yusuke didn't attack him." Her hands twisted in her shirt nervously. "I'm not - I'm not a good fighter. I try to avoid it when I can."

Mrs. Higurashi placed her hands on her daughter's shoulders. "Yes, well, there isn't much need for fighting these days, now is there?"

Genkai gave an unexpected bark of laughter, causing the other woman to jump. From the floor, Yusuke gave a huff. "Ha! Just because your battle is five hundred years in the past doesn't mean the rest of ours is over. There's always something."

The breath she had been holding left her in a rush, and Kagome felt her mother's hands tighten almost painfully on her shoulders. "You - how do you know about that?"

Setting down her cup, Genkai gave her a level look. "Same way I know about the jewel shards hanging around your neck. Same way I know that you'll need to go back." She tucked her hands into her sleeves, unsympathetic to the fact that Kagome couldn't seem to breath. "You ever wonder what happened to all the demons?"

Kagome fidgeted. She had. It was a question that had kept her up on more than one occasion - and one she had yet to find an answer for. Behind her, her mother's voiced Kagome's worst suspicion. "They've died out."

"A species as powerful a youkai don't just die out, Mrs. Higurashi," Genkai scoffed, nodding to Kagome. "After your time in the past is done, a separate realm for the demons was created." She shrugged. "Every now and then they slip through, but overall the barrier does its job."

"A barrier," she echoed, voice soft. Kagame's mind turned. Of all the possibilities she had imagined, that certainly hadn't been one of them. "But, how?" Who had that kind of power?

Genkai waved a hand, a clear dismissal. "It's a long story and frankly it doesn't matter. The point is, until Naraku is defeated the fate of the present is uncertain." Her eyes hardened, voice grave. "I've come to help with your training. Rumor has it that it's been lacking, and I won't have the fate of the world resting in the hands of a girl with a handful of cheap parolee tricks."

Kagome sat, stunned. "I -"

"Kagome is doing her own training here."

"Yes, I can see how well that's been going," Genkai remarked dryly.

Mrs. Higurashi's eyes narrowed, her words clipped. "She's still healing."

Scoffing, Genesis finished her tea before pushing the cup away from her. "She's wasting time. She doesn't need more time to heal, she needs to get stronger."

"She -"

"You want me to go with you," Kagome murmured, effectively distracting both women from their dispute.

Genkai nodded. "My training grounds are remote. It is where I trained my apprentice, and it is where I will train you."

Mama gave the older woman a sharp glare. "She isn't ready! She –"

"I'll go."

There is a beat of silence that follows Kagome's declaration. One that is quickly filled with Mrs. Higurashi's adamant protests. "No, absolutely not!" She stood in front of her daughter, gripping her shoulders the same way she did when she was a child needing reprimanding. "Kagome, you don't even know this woman. I won't let you run off with some stranger!"

She gave her mother a small smile, laying a hand over hers gently in hopes of reassuring her. "Momma. I have to." It was time. She could feel it, resonating deep in her chest; a sense of time running short. Against her skin, the jewel shards hummed as if in agreement. On the other side of the well, time wasn't standing still. The longer she waited, the more time she gave Naraku to gather strength. The more opportunities he'd have to hurt the people she loved.

Shaking her head, Mrs. Higurashi's eyes were pleading. "No. No, Sweetie. You don't have to do anything. You can just stay here, and be the teenage girl that you are. He can't get them here in the present anyway, right? So stay. Stay here where it's safe."

Kagome blinked back the tears burning her eyes, voice cracking despite her best efforts to keep it together. "Momma, I can't." She laughed - watery and full of bitter acceptance. "I have to go save the world." She gestured to the old woman who, wisely, remained silent. "And if she can train me - make me stronger - then, maybe, I won't die doing it."

Mrs. Higurashi's reeled back, as if struck – staring at her daughter with wide, searching eyes as her complexion paled. They never talked about it. The possibility of her never coming back – of her dying – was an unspoken taboo. Words that weren't ever said for fear of them becoming true. Kagome had never wanted to speak the thoughts out loud either, but she was at a crossroad. She needed training desperately. The past was waiting for her, but it couldn't wait forever. The world as she knew it depended on it.

Her mother's face crumpled. "I don't want you to leave," she choked, her hands trembling as they raised to cup her daughter's cheeks. "I don't want to let you go."

Kagome covered one of her mother's hands with her own. She wondered when her mother's hand started to feel so small - so frail. "I know, Momma, but you have to."

Mrs. Higurashi pulled her close, wrapping her arms around her only daughter and biting back a whimpered sob. "I know," she whispered, her voice wet with tears. "I hate it, but I know."

Fiercely, Kagome hugged her back, knowing it probably wouldn't be the last time but feeling like it may as well be. Her throat was tight, and she took a gasping breath as she tried to soothe the squeezing pain in her chest. She looked over her mother's shoulder, taking in the tiny kitchen she had grown up in before her eyes settled on Genkai. The old woman gave a solemn nod of approval before stepping out of the room to give them some privacy. By the doorway, Yusuke sat – watching her with the same intensity, the same intelligence, as he always had. She knew, deep down, that he understood. Maybe not everything, but enough. His eyes, deep and warm, gave her strength.

In his eyes, she saw faith.

AN: It still doesn't feel up to snuff, but I'm sick of looking at it and wishing it was finished. Plus, with the overwhelming response you guys gave for the last chapter, I couldn't bring myself to hold onto it any longer. You guys are amazing! I'm happy to tell you that the next chapter has been most anticipated, and I am super excited to share it with you. I will try to get it out as soon as I can, but please note that I have been busy rewriting one of my Fairy Tail fics into an original work that I hope to someday (hopefully in the somewhat near future) publish. If you want to know more about its progress I have been updating on my profile page.

As always, thank you all for your continued support! This fic wouldn't exist without you!