Back to that Time

Part 28: Change

Kagome got up, leaving the apartment for a moment to cool off. Didn't Sasuke say they should wait? He was confusing her... However, at the same time, he'd pretty much said on multiple occasions that he had a hard time keeping his hands off of her.

She didn't know how long she stood there, watching as the sun set. She didn't even realize when he had opened the door, coming to stand beside her. Her thoughts had drifted, thinking of the past, of the future, of family and friends.

Her hands placed gently over her heart, she closed her eyes, waiting. Feeling.

Nothing. No Shikon no Tama. The only demon around was sealed within Naruto. No Naraku waiting around the corner. No Goshinbaku. Not even a single plot of land that felt nearly as holy as her shrine back home.

She opened her eyes slowly, staring at the ground a while.

"Everything's...different." She said eventually, when she noticed Sasuke standing next to her. His arms wrapped around her shoulders and she leaned comfortably against him.

"I...had a little brother." She said, placing her hands on his arms. "I wonder if he thinks I'm dead..."

She looked up at Sasuke. "I miss my family."

Sasuke nodded, understanding. He had often sat outside, wondering what it would have been like, if his brother never took the path he did.

"My mother was understanding, strong...she watched as I'd disappear down a well and come back, sometimes with broken bones. She'd patch me up and give me what advice she could." Kagome paused, her lip quivering. "And grandpa was kind of crazy. While growing up there wasn't demons, ninjas, or any danger like that. Danger didn't come from the shadows so much as it came from the random people that would snap. Grandpa use to-to plaster ofudas o-on strangers. He...he..." Kagome couldn't take it any more.

Too many things were different, again. Too many things were changing. Too many feelings were overwhelming her. She wanted to go home to her mother, to ask her what she should do.

Sasuke led her inside and simply lay in bed with her, stroking her back gently, never saying a word.