Disclaimer, in case it wasn't obvious. I don't own Inuyasha, or really any other property. Thank you.
Being Alive
Chapter XX: Lost in Time.
Kagome:
I can't wait.
Already ready for school, Kagome was looking in the mirror for a brief second. Her hair was combed, her uniform was on, and everything was heading towards today being just one more day to get out of the way before her birthday.
It was hardly going to be the most exciting day of the year, but at least she could maybe get away from a lot of her responsibilities, at least for a while. She'd already made plans during the day to see Yuka and Eri, though Ayumi couldn't make it. After that her mom promised they were going to have a nice dinner with her brother and grandfather, which on its face sounded great, but she also knew her little brother was probably going to be a pain and her grandfather, as much as she loved him, was probably going to bring up all of his bobbles and stories about ancient spirits, demons, or just random strange facts about how everything tied together. Helping him with the shrine at all, and the trinkets behind it, was another one of her time-consuming responsibilities that she wished she could avoid, but sadly that was just how life was.
Just one more day of school. If I can get all my homework done tonight, and finish helping Grandpa in the morning, then I'm all clear. I'm even going to get Sunday off too. I can see everyone tomorrow and then just relax for a day. I hope mom got me something good, but I also hope she didn't spend too much on anything. Oh! What if it's-
Her mind felt like it jumped for a brief second. The world around her didn't seem familiar, but only for a split moment. Her eyes blinked as she stopped walking. Her way to school today had seemed perfectly normal up until now. She was walking past the park as usual when she'd prepared to cross the street, only one of the apartment buildings looked different than before. It looked in fact, like it was a lot older, like when she was a child. She knew that block had been torn down and rebuilt 5 years ago, but right now it looked like it had when she was a little girl. It even had the same chips in the walls. Part of her just thought she was going crazy.
Am I really imagining this?
Beginning to walk towards the building, she crossed the street early once there was an opening in traffic, looking over the old structure on the corner. Pausing at the wall as she stared at it dimly for a second, she looked towards the entrance and then beyond. This was really here. It wasn't the new building at all. Did she really just imagine walking past construction? Did she imagine that new building? It didn't seem real. The surreal moment around all of it came even more to life when she looked both ways, before touching the side of the wall, looking for any sign of difference that may appear. No, this was here. Her old friend Kura used to live here, but they'd moved away before the construction.
I have to be imagining something. I've- What time is it!? Oh no, I can't be late today.
Looking around, the mystery of the resurrected building left behind, Kagome took off into a short run, making it past several intersections on her way to school before stopping outside the grounds, slipping past an opening in the gate and making her way towards her first class for the day. The only thing was, there were so many new students. Like, there were a ridiculousnumber of them. She recognized Eri walk past though and waved. Her friend was hanging out with a few other girls she didn't recognize either, though she waved back, awkwardly.
Oh weird, did I do something?
She was acting like she was just going to move on. With the weekend coming up, that actually really hurt. Not wanting to be left behind, Kagome knew she needed to make an effort.
"Eri! Hey, wait up!" Kagome started.
"Uhm, hi?" she responded back, her other new friends looking back at her with sly smiles on their faces.
"Sorry Eri, oh hello as well," she said waving to the other two new students. "There are so many new people here, it's weird. I hardly recognized anyone. Do you know where Yuka and Ayumi are right now? I don't see them."
There was a moment of uncomfortable silence even as the other students moved past and around them. The familiarity of her own life seemed to be slipping away from her as she quietly tried to look around. She looked down, seeing her unform and backpack straps, before looking back up at her friend questioningly. She almost thought she was being teased now.
"Do I know you from somewhere? Are you the new girl?" Eri asked. "I think you joined class, what, two weeks ago?"
The pause only grew as Kagome almost stepped back, but didn't. She'd known Eri for 3 years. Why was she acting like she didn't know her? Why was she acting like she didn't know Yuka and Ayumi? Her eyes quickly darted to the other two girls before back at Eri. This wasn't some kind of joke, was it? Was she being played around with?
"Come on Eri, stop kidding," Kagome tried before half-laughing. "We've known each other since we got here. Remember, just yesterday-"
"Look, this isn't really that funny. Is this a prank?" Eri asked in return, her features hardened, a line appearing between her eyes almost as her brow hardened, the clear sign of annoyance that always appeared for her when something had caught her ire.
"N-no it's not a prank," Kagome managed, feeling stunned before, her own expression must have appeared bewildered before Eri smiled back at her, returning to a less irritated state.
"Oh! Okay then. You must just have me confused for someone else. Anyway, you have a great day, I hope we see each other in class!"
As soon as they turned around, joining the swarm of students around them, she could already hear them talking.
"Wow, what was wrong with her?"
"Did she look confused to you?"
"Eri, I can't believe she knew your name. That's creepy."
What… what's going on?
Her memories felt foreign. Not that they weren't her own, but that she couldn't get them to match what was happening in the world around her. There was a slow-set of panic beginning to bubble beneath the surface as she tried to even rationalize what was happening. She felt very alone. More alone than she'd ever felt before in her life. Everyone around her looked different, only a few faces were recognized to her at all as she looked around her. No one acted as if they'd seen her before. No one stopped, no one said hello. Even the teachers had changed, she didn't recognize a single one as they moved to their respective classrooms.
In a state of almost shell-shock, she walked towards her classroom, peering through the window in the room's door first, looking for any sign of an open desk. There weren't any. Of the entire classroom, she only recognized Hojo, but even then, he wasn't supposed to be in her class. Something broke for her as her heart started racing. Everything was wrong. Everyone wasn't right. Nothing was matching anything she knew.
Quickly running to the edge of the hall, she slipped past the doors before heading into the school yard. She needed to get home and figure out what was going on. Maybe she needed medication, especially if she was losing her mind like this. Because right now she felt like she was losing her mind.
She wasn't great at track and field, but her legs had never pushed so hard in her life. Each of the rapid steps her feet took on the pavement felt like she was running overtop of a dream. None of this seemed real. Even as she passed the apartment that shouldn't exist anymore, she tried to even grasp how that could happen. The shrine came up in the distance. Despite all the urgency and fear she knew home was safe.
Whatever was happening, her mom was going to be there. Maybe she could help. Right now, coherent thought was even beginning to be a struggle. Where were all her friends? Why was everything already wrong? Why didn't Eri recognize her? Why was the apartment building back? Where had her teachers gone? Why were so many people different?
I have to get home. Once I'm there I can…
Stopping just outside the gate, she looked up, looking at the dwelling she called home. It looked the same, nothing seemed too different, but she wasn't even sure of that. A small pang of relief emerged in a sea of anxiety. Right now, she just wanted to see someone who she knew, and knew her. Running past the shrine itself she almost slammed into the door of her home before knocking once. Pulling out her keys when no one answered, she took her house key and stared at it, she was almost willing it to be right. When she pushed it into the lock however, it didn't go gracefully. The doorhandle still wouldn't turn.
No. No. No. No. No. No this can't be happening.
The tide rose, and sharply. Waves of panic starting to rush through her system as she felt her lungs started to hyperventilate. How? HOW? She'd been here most of her life, how could her keys not work?
"Hey!" an older voice warned from behind her. "That is not the entrance to the shrine. Who are you, what are you doing here?"
Familiar. Even though in all this it seemed maddened, at least that voice was one she could never forget. The relief was ever present, even though she didn't hear him refer to her in a familiar form. Turning around, she saw her grandfather. She almost wanted to break down. Turning around, she peered at him, worried about being turned away. She couldn't afford that right now, not after everything that happened.
"Grandpa?" she responded.
The older man seemed to regard her for a moment before looking just patient.
"Grandpa? I think you have me mistaken for someone else," he said, though his tone was forgiving. "I thought it'd be me with bad eyesight in my old age. Now, did you come to visit the shrine? We are open today, and we have several trinkets available, but we-"
It was all the same, but without her. It was like she'd been removed from this somehow.
"Grandpa," she repeated, this time seriously, her tone controlled by frantic. "I don't know what happened today. Everything's changed but I went to school and no one recognized me. I came here looking for mom and Sota and they aren't here either. And now you're not recognizing me either. Please, please listen. I… I'm scared, and I don't know what's going on-"
"Young lady, I think you had best sit down and-"
He has to believe me! What is happening?!
"I'm your granddaughter," she repeated. "I am Kagome, listen. I'm not joking. I left this house earlier today. Everything was normal until I got to the park. You have to believe me."
"I have three grandchildren, young lady. I know them quite well. Do you need me to call someone?" he asked, stepping closer but still being cautious, now keeping his hands up.
Three… 3 grandchildren? Three?
Without thinking, Kagome felt her head getting lighter and lighter as she lost train of her through, her stomach flipping as she felt blood rushing through her body like never before. Her legs felt weak and her feet started to slip, just as consciousness started slipping from the edges of her waking mind.
Her hand reached out, grabbing the doorhandle briefly before she felt herself completely collapse.
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Kagome:
"Dad, I don't know what you're talking about," a voice said in the background, it was dull, and fuzzy, just like her vision felt. "I'm telling you dad. I've not been going around. Now, I'm going to call child services and see what we should do. But it'll probably involve the police. I don't want to hear about how you think this is some spirit-thing, okay?"
"Nori, I am telling you now that there are spiritual energies at work. I can sense it in my old bones. After I got her in here, I went looking for a sign and-"
"Dad for the love of… Look, I can't be around here that much. You know Tamiko doesn't want me running around trying to help with these kinds of things. I'm not even going to tell her about this one. We'll file a report, I'll help you file the report, and then I've got to get home. I don't even want her knowing about this because it'll worry her and she'll start demanding we start looking for more assisted living arrangements for you."
"Assisted living! You listen here, I am your father and I am telling you that-"
When Kagome sat up, she felt her head throbbing before looking over from the couch. The room was familiar, it was the same living room she'd been in before, but the furnishings were entirely different. It looked like her grandpa's room. The couch was one she'd never recognized before, something old and brown. But what she saw was something she'd not been prepared for at all. The voice was a distant memory for her, but she could still remember it.
And now the name. Nori? It was something she never assigned to anyone, she knew them by a different name, but she knew who it was as soon as she sat up. She'd last seen him when she'd been a child, a real child, before Sota had been before.
Dad?... Oh… oh my god.
Something ill came over her as she tried to even get up, her eyes adjusted to the light though her head was still spinning. Had she fallen? She could barely remember. It'd all felt just like some kind of bad nightmare?
I don't understand.
Frustrated tears edged on her eyes, mixed with grief and also surprise. She'd not seen her father in so long, but he didn't even know who she was. She didn't even know anymore. This was a dream that she couldn't wake up from. Worse than that, it was a dream she woke up into, but it was a nightmare.
"She's awake," her father cut-off her grandfather before carefully approaching.
"Hello, I am Higurashi Nori. This is my father. You've already met him. We're going to get you help."
She just stared back at him, trying to hold back tears before she choked for a second.
"Dad?" she asked.
He looked just as she'd remembered. The bridge of his nose, his chin. Sota always took more after their mother, but they had the same, longer face than her mother. His hairline hadn't changed at all, but she could see some faint signs of grey coming in, and there were the familiar signs of age around the edges of his eyes and deeper recesses in his skin…
But as soon as she'd said anything, he put his hands on his hips and just signed. He looked at his watch a second later, clearly frustrated.
"Look, we're going to make a call and-"
"Please, please, dad you need to… Oh my god…" she choked again. "I've… I…"
She wanted to get up to hug him, but she noticed how he was already standing. He didn't know her. He didn't even know of her. She couldn't just break down though. She had to do something. She had to do anything.
"Dad, can you grab me the phone?" her own father asked.
"I am telling you there is a mistake," her grandfather said. "Look at her. Doesn't she look like Tamiko?"
"Thank you, dad, but I think I'd notice if I had another fucking kid? Okay? Now look, I'm not trying to be a problem, but she probably needs a doctor. So…"
"My name is Higurashi Kagome," Kagome said, trying to speak up. "Please. I'm not kidding. Everything went wrong. My birthday is tomorrow and I went to school and no one recognized me. I live here with my mom, and my little brother. Grandpa runs the shrine. It's dedicated to an old sacred jewel. He sells trinkets. Mom takes care of the chores in the house. Sota-"
Nori, her father, with his recently cut, short-hair turned back towards her and seemed almost mildly upset. Kagome looked at her pack, grabbing it and pulling it over, beginning to sort through it, looking for her student ID.
"A strange, powerful magic must have-"
"Dad, this is completely crazy. Alright, I'll get the phone myself and-"
She managed to clutch her ID from her pack before preparing to turn it over. Her eyes traced over it to look at it for meaning, a purpose even. A few seconds passed by as she took in her picture, as if reminding herself that she wasn't crazy. It was all true, all her memories, they were still there from before. Her dad had died, her mom came to live with her Grandfather, she lived here with her little brother. It was all true. Her name was on there, the same as it should be.
Moving her hand outward towards him, with her identification as an offering, she managed to look at him again, trying to search for the signs of the father she'd known, even if briefly. It looked just like him, though he looked serious and angry, even if he was withholding it.
But then how was this happening?
"Is this real?" he asked her, questioning the authenticity of it, though his voice was confused, mixed with a quietness of reluctance.
The same reluctance she was feeling. Because her father had been dead most of her life. And now here he was, and she didn't even exist to him. She didn't have the energy to be offended. She didn't even know where she was. If everything was wrong, if she was crazy, then how… how did she still have her student ID?
"Yes. I go to the high school a few blocks away and no one recognized me. I barely recognized anyone, and anyone I did, didn't know me. Dad. Dad I…" she didn't even know if she could say it. "I don't know what's happening. I don't even know. Look. I. I don't understand because… because you've been dead most of my life."
That was enough to catch his attention, he looked over to her as she felt herself panicking.
"I was young. Very young. Sota was only just born and she said it was a car accident. I only remember parts of your voice, or how you used to kiss mom before work. You were working for a car manufacturer as a manager and-"
"The car accident?" her grandfather cut in. "The one where you were hurt and you lost your leg?"
What?
She'd not even noticed he seemed to walk with a small limp. A prosthetic leg then?
It became even quieter before she just pulled her legs up, wrapping her arms around them and looked ahead. Everything was… uncertain. Nobody knew her even.
"We need to get some more people involved," her father managed to say. "Something's not right. We can get the police and a few other people involved-"
It was then that her grandpa walked forward, hands behind his back with his eyes closed.
"I believe that this is something that can only be solved by discovering the spiritual nature of what has happened here. If we only had the true power of the shrine to help us, and the Shikon Jewel, we would be able to-"
"Listen to yourself dad!"
"Then how would you explain this young girl? A girl who knows you and I, and speaks of your middle child, wife, myself, and your car accident?"
"It's fraud," her father declared. "She must have figured out-"
Kagome turned out the conversation, her eyes just looking down at towards the carpet. What was going to be left of her life after all this? Just a few hours ago she was more worried about what she and her friends were going to do on her birthday. Now it was like she was never born.
I still have all my schoolwork with me. I still have my ID. I… don't understand. How can no one know me? How is my dad here? My dad's here. He's alive? Oh my god. He doesn't even know me.
She felt as sick as she was confused and scared. It was hard for her to keep down the breakfast her mom made her this morning, which was more than ironic. She could remember her mom being in the kitchen only a couple hours ago.
"Remember Kagome, I want you to pick up your grandpa's prescription from the pharmacy on the way home."
For a brief second, she started to worry she'd not gotten the prescription, before remembering that she'd never been asked by these people to grab anything. Where was she going to go? That was a question getting louder and louder in her head as she realized just how alone she'd become. None of this could be real, it had to be some kind of nightmare.
More than anything… she was afraid.
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Toeso:
"Do you sense that?" came a quiet question.
This was hardly the most enjoyable thing he'd found himself entrenched with. Validity of purpose was something he'd ever shied from. His body bore the scars from his purpose. His purpose however, was not shared by the irritant who draped herself over his apartment's furnishings. The art of seduction was hardly lost on him, but he wasn't one to bite at such things. Long silver hair, normally kept up, had been allowed to flow alongside her, with a pair of ruby eyes staring back at him. She reserved her most inviting appearance for him. The dress she was wearing was lazily worn, and made seemingly of ivory turned to silk.
The gathering clouds outside were enough to choke out the sun's light, a symbol he'd come to more than appreciate with his time on this world. Briefly, he turned away from the interloper, turning his attention to the clouds. They offended his eyes in what they concealed, necessary as they were. Every time it happened in his penthouse, he felt slighted.
He opted not to answer his loving guest's question however, instead walking to the small wine-rack imbedded in his wall, pulling a beautifully sealed bottles from its place. Today, more than any other day, felt eventful. It was the beginning of the end for him. This clever place had been built from the outside, not within. Not just his home, but everything the lands now were. Taking out a wine glass, he placed it in front of him before pulling the cork from the top of the bottle.
"So selfish, Toeso, would you not even pour me a glass?" she asked, her tone almost playful in it's smooth, unflinching nature. One only noted the subtle differences in how she spoke, to understand her mood.
Red eyes turned upwards, staring into the glass in front of him. He looked into the mirror to see what he was. A defeated creature, once so elevated in his victories. Like the nation which he resided in, he was once a titan atop the world, and much like it, he'd shared its humiliation and fate beyond. It was a wound he'd never forgive, or forget. It went beyond the physical, beyond where the shrapnel had punctured his body, or the bullets tore into his flesh, those simply healed, they were done away within as quickly as he received them. The only true scars to remain were the ones left on the soul.
Only those on the soul, could remain upon a body. He was level with that clever remarked as he noted the scar on his left cheek, marring what was otherwise his 'perfect' features, running from his cheek, around to the top of his temple. One which predated the war, but one which displayed to him all of his failings. Tracing his eyes back to his task, he reached for a glass taking it from the cabinet and placing it next to his own. Pouring out the red liquid within, he poured to the death of his allies, and the sealing of his own fate shortly there after.
"Need you so mope over the politics of the humans?" her voice asked, sounding more than bored. "I know it hurts, but it was 50 years ago," she said. "Besides, look at what this place has become. Truly a kingdom worth residing in."
Taking the two full glasses in hand, Toeso turned about, reaching out delicately with one glass as he approached, her face never smiled, but it was more than welcoming with every step he made along the way. Part of him knew his parents would squirm at what this all was. Their hands touched as her fingers slipped over his briefly before she pulled the glass from his hand. In her eyes he could see the disappointment that he didn't follow the glass itself.
Instead, he pulled his own to his lips, tasting the flavour that had been contained for as many decades as there had been since the end of the war itself. He allowed it to remained in his moment, knowing the taste would be fleeting to him. All things were but fleeting for ones such as themselves. The last of a dying breed, or very well near it.
Brushing back his bangs with his right hand, he turned away from Sokuko, moving towards the window to simply look out it.
"Humans build beautiful things. The humans of our father and forefather's lands build wondrous things. They and others, swept around this globe to reach out and take what was to be theirs. It was my duty to join them, it was my duty to cut down the enemies of the land itself. And I saw bravery, I saw bloodshed, and I saw divine understanding of what it is to be honoured. I saw through our father's eyes in those battles, Sokuko. I will never forget the insight which it granted me."
"Japan did not surrender today, brother," she observed, rising from the couch and beginning a slow walk across the surface of the hardwood floor beneath them, her bare feet pressing against each board gently as she almost glided to him. "It is only April 30th."
"No, but today is the day our fate became certain," he responded. "Today is the day the Germans lost their leader. They fell to the wayside, much as the Italians… Romanians, Hungarians, and all the others did. I would have killed to be there in their capital. I would have longed to kill every one of the interlopers who came there, if only to stand beside such brave warriors. Their deaths in the name of a dying cause, much as our own people's deaths, were the highest honour a mortal human could achieve. I drink to their memory today."
An unwelcome arm slipped around his waist as she came to his side, resting her head on his chest as she too stared out into the clouds forming all around them.
"Mmmm, always the idealist? Always so enthralled by the humans, brother? Just as our grandfather was? Is that why you cannot love me as I love you?"
Looking back towards her, he gave a sympathetic gesture with his eyes, allowing his brow to shift enough for her to notice, as the hand she'd wrapped herself against took hers gently.
"One such as myself, could never love you as you deserve to be loved, dearest sister," he told her gently, offering her no more than the warmth of his hand, and the shoulder she'd attached herself to. "I cannot do that for you."
There was only a brief sigh as she looked out the window a moment later.
"Yes, I know," she said gently, her voice almost distant, her eyes tracing every raindrop as his turned to follow. "But in my dreams, Toeso, in my dreams you can love me."
"Dreams are for those who are not strong enough to shape the world as they please," he answered. "Which is why I have dreams of my own."
"What do you dream of, brother?"
"I dream of being victorious all those years ago," he answered her. "I dream that I can change the past."
Her body pulled away from his as she started to step back, still attempting to be seductive as she held onto his hand, only letting each finger go as she drifted further and further back.
"We can make our dreams a reality, brother. We can both have whatever we want," she said, her tone almost teasing him. "Did you not feel it? Couldn't you taste it in the air?"
There was a pause as he turned to the rain, seeing the specks of water beginning to build up on his windows, and puddles beginning to form on the landscape outside of his dwelling, across his gardens and grounds atop the spire he called his home. The artificial mountain, with a small palace atop it. Taking another sip of his wine and closing his eyes, he allowed himself time to breathe and just indulge in the taste once more, as his less tuned senses reached out across the city, reaching out to feel beyond the clouds towards the very horizon itself.
But no, it wasn't so far. When he tasted it along with his wine, his head shifted slightly as he tasted something else. Something so rare, so obscure, it was new, a new aura. It seemed impossible, really. Nothing was born into this world as it should have been anymore. The planet was choked. How such a thing could be here and now was fascinating.
"It's familiar, but unknown. It's new, but old," he said before turning his eyes to his darling sister. "Are you saying we should go on an outing?"
"It'd be the first outing we've had in years."
The doors to his patio popped open as soon as the thought was completed, but not by his own will or that of his sister. Narrowing his gaze on the figure stepping in, who was fixing his gloves. The black suit was a dead giveaway first, his overcoat hanging over his shoulders and his short-cropped black hair turning towards the two of them. Always a beacon of fashion, the figure just met his gaze with a set of ruby gems of his own. It would appear today was the first reunion they'd had in almost 30 years. Decades were something that could be savoured much more readily than the soft moments between battles.
"Seikyo," he heard his sister's voice come in over the rain.
Unlike the two of them, he offered a calm, eased smile without so much as a second thought. Of all of them, he resembled their dearly departed mother the most. Even as he finished fixing his gloves, he waited until he was completely 'prepared' to address them.
"Forgive me for my transgressions, I have not been as close or available to you as our pedigree would have it," he remarked. "For the missed moments from here and there, I offer you my sincerest well-wishes in those lost droplets of time."
"You sense it as well, then?" their sister voiced.
Ambition was always Seikyo's game. Where as he sought honour and superiority, and their sister sought her own greed and power, it was Seikyo who was always able to achieve the most, outside the realms of violence of course. He'd inherited any traits, both genetic and spiritual, from their parents. He had been the apple of their parent's eye, even. The demon who would have been lord, until he simply walked away from it all.
"You understand the nature of my visit. I thought it prudent to approach you first, Tokyo is after all, your domain. I am a mere interloper," he offered, before smiling. "And I know exactly what it is. Such an exciting event. The return of the Shikon Jewel, and a divine soul which carries it. The reincarnation of the spirit of Kikyo herself."
Kikyo? The lover of Inuyasha? The holder of the Shikon Jewel? The Jewel of Four Souls. It may offer even in theory a wish to be granted, or unlimited power. It may even offer this world an opportunity to be what it was destined to be…. Fascinating.
"Allow me to change into something more appropriate," Sokuko said, her tone lighter than normal. "It shouldn't take long to acquire, and then we can celebrate, together, as a family."
Raising the remains of his own wine as a toast, Toeso nodded gratefully as their sibling retreated into the guest room, before he took down the last of the liquid into his throat.
"What is it that you wish to use this jewel for, brother? Surely you know the legends behind it. You know how it even ties to one demon named Inuyasha, and another named Naraku," he observed.
There was a pause before Seikyo just allowed his smile to reappear across his features, a slow expansion across each of his cheeks before one half curved higher than the other, arrogantly displaying his intentions even before his words.
"Why brother, for the same reason I want anything, to return Naraku to life, of course."
Ah, their ever-fateful Grandfather. The one whom was slain by their own father in the feudal era. The one who could give them all of their desires, at least as far as they understood so long ago. A laudable goal, if there ever was one.
"Wonderful," Sokuko's voice came back as she walked back into the room, having left behind an ivory dress in favour of a more weather appropriate one, as well as a white fur coat. "I'd wanted to meet dear grandpa ever since we killed mother and father."
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Author's Notes:
The backlogged chapters are now up. They are now completed. New content hopefully before the end of the year, but my Dragon Ball story is a bit higher on priority, and my life's a busy nightmare atm :(
BUT, this chapter was great to edit this week. Bringing in Kagome has been something I've wanted to have for a while. I kinda wish I'd made the story start 1 year before, not 2, so there will be a few time skips happening over the next 10 or so chapters, as I'd like to find a way to have Kagome apart of the cast within the next x10 chapters, or close to it. Such a great character.
It was also fun to allow Kagome to be in a completely different situation. If you have questions, they will be answered. But needless to say, the ground changed out from under Kagome's feet here, lol.
To everyone who has reviewed so far, thank you! To everyone who has read it, please consider leaving a review if you're enjoying your stay so far. Beyond that, everyone have a good week, and stay safe out there.
And as a side note. Today, as I write this, Kirby Morrow, the English Voice Actor for Miroku has passed away. He died at 47 years old, in the city of my birth. He has been involved in tons of series I've enjoyed for decades, and was by all accounts a good human being. I will miss the work that he provided to so many, and I'm deeply saddened by this.
I just wanted to add this here because of the date, but also because I want to let everyone know to express your care for the people you know, especially in the times we're in. Sometimes, people are gone sooner than you think.
