The Change-Up
A/N: Hi guys. This is my first fiction in a very long time, kinda anxious. Hope you all will like it!
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or the characters.
Inuyasha and Kagome always whining that the other person's life and duties are much easier. At least, they think so. But what happens when they get to know how it is to live each other's lives?
1. The Change-Up
"It's hot," Inuyasha said to the ebony-haired girl sitting beside him.
"Hmm." Was the only reply he got from her. She was reading a book and taking notes from it, giving a very little amount of attention to Inuyasha.
It was indeed a very hot day, so hot that even Inuyasha had to say it out loud. The spring was almost to its end. All the farmers had finished their works earlier than usual and went to their homes already.
On such an afternoon, except for the little chirping of birds and the sound of a stream flowing far away, the atmosphere around the couple was really quiet.
"It's quite boring as well," Inuyasha spoke again as he slept on his back, his hands under his head in the shadow of a huge tree. He wanted to have a conversation with her because talking with Kagome meant the two bickering, and she getting irritated by every moment. That could surely get rid off his boredom.
If only Kagome would cooperate with him...
"Hmm." Kagome again replied in the same way she did before.
Obviously, Kagome was either too busy or wanted to piss Inuyasha off. And of course, Inuyasha knew that it must be the latter one. Because how can one ever get so busy with a mere book?
He glanced at her with annoyance and then asked her again,
"Are you bored, Kagome?"
"Hmm."
"Am I stupid to talk with you?"
"Hmm." He stopped for a moment before asking her again.
"Are you a wench?" 'Now she'll 'hmm' to this as well. The fun part is here everyone!' Inuyasha thought while grinning.
"Sorry but no..." Kagome's face broke into a smirk and looked at Inuyasha with a victorious face.
That was it. In the blink of an eye, Inuyasha stood up and grabbed the book from Kagome's hand and then took a leap, only to situate himself on a branch of the tree.
"Hey! What are you doing?" Kagome asked, completely bewildered with his actions. 'I don't know how he still manages to take me by surprise considering I know how childishly he behaves all the time.'
"So you were aware of how the conversation was going and you still opted for humming like a cow!... Wait, cows?"
"What about cows?" She asked.
"Cows don't hum, do they? They moo." His eyebrows crossed as he fell deep in thought thinking which animal does humming.
"Will you just give me the book?!" Kagome screamed.
"Shut up, first tell me which animal hums!" Inuyasha replied in the same tone.
'Ugh, this guy is such a pain...' Kagome thought to herself and calmed down. "I don't know, Inuyasha. Bees, maybe?"
"So even you can't think of any other animal, eh?" Kagome shook her head and Inuyasha broke into a grin as he spoke, "Seems like education isn't working out for you as much as it should."
"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Kagome yelled at him and she saw a bunch of village kids staring at her. "Uh... haha. I said, shut the suck up." She quickly corrected herself. 'Damn it!'
"No, you said 'fuck'." One of the kids stated as matter-of-factly.
Kagome gulped but still insisted. "I didn't. Haha. It was suck, dear."
Inuyasha snorted. "As if the word 'suck' is all innocent." Kagome shot him a glare and he stuck out his tongue.
She took a breath to calm herself down while gritting her teeth. 'One step at a time, Kagome.'
Turning towards the kids, who were now interested in how a word like 'suck' can be dirty, she spoke, "Children, please don't go home and repeat the same in front of your parents. Or anywhere, actually."
The tallest out of the bunch of three feet tall kids faced his mates and announced, "Samurais, we have a new mission now. We'll scream 'fuck' as we go through the village. The one who does a wider spread will decide what we will play tomorrow." This was followed by a number of, what were intended to be, masculine grunts but was actually very similar to puppies squealing.
"WHAT! NO! DON'T! COME BACK HERE, GUYS!" Kagome called out with panic but too late. The kids ran away with their fiery spirit.
'Oh, shit. Can't believe I swore in front of kids.' She covered her face with her palms, very disappointed.
"Tch, tch. What is this irresponsible behaviour?" The annoying voice reached Kagome's ears and without even looking, she knew he must have a grin plastered across his face.
With a wrinkled forehead, Kagome yelled, "Shut up! This is all your fault! Give me my book!"
"My fault? My fault?!" Now, even Inuyasha's temper rose. "I was bored to death, Kagome! Still am! But you just care about your stupid book! Keh!" He barked at her.
"Well, be glad that it wasn't a real death. But if this shit keeps going on, you will be dead in no time! Give me my book!"
Inuyasha kept his hands on his waist. "Like I am scared of you."
Kagome's eyebrows shot up, intrigued. "Really? Wanna try me?" She challenged him. "Hand over the book, or you know I have my ways." Her expressions spoke well of her intentions- which Inuyasha knew would not bode well for him. He waited for a moment thinking about what to do.
Deciding not to get buried some feet under the ground, he unwillingly gave her the book back and returned to his earlier position. 'Besides she did say she has something important to do.' He thought.
Kagome was surprised as he gave her the book back without anymore stupid tantrums, but then she decided to shake it off. 'Thank god he's acting like a grownup for once in a while.'
"Thank you." She said bitterly. "And I am sorry that I am not entertaining you, because apparently, that is the reason for my existence." He made a face at her.
"Inuyasha, I have exams coming. I've got to study for them. They are important for my admission to high school." Kagome noticed a dumbfounded look on Inuyasha's face and hence didn't bother explaining any further. "Okay? My hands are tied here." She concluded and he burst out with laughter at her last statement.
Kagome rolled her eyes. "Since when did the ancient era become the era of perverts?"
"Since the modern uncivilized people started saying fuck." He stated mischievously.
She pursed her lips and stared at her book but in a minute, she turned and looked back at the boy.
"What, wench?" He asked bitterly as he saw her glancing at him. 'Hmm, he does look crankier than usual. Should I check his diaper?' She grinned as she thought of this.
"Inuyasha, are you really bored?" Kagome asked him.
"Let's see, hmmmmmm, I am!" He replied and Kagome chuckled and returned back to reading her book. Still, after a while when she took a glimpse of him from the corner of her eyes, she saw him playing with a line of ants. He would break their line and they would again, form one.
'Wow, he really is bored... otherwise, who the hell plays with ants out of all things?' She pulled the sleeve of her white shirt up which revealed her watch. 'It's 1 o'clock. Wow, I have been studying for like four hours now...' Her eyes again fell on Inuyasha and thought, 'I guess I can take a break now.' She shut her book and spoke,
"So Inuyasha, what do you want to do?" Kagome asked him while putting her books in her bag. He gave her a questioning look.
"But don't you have to study or something?"
"Yeah, I do. But I have been studying for so long, I decided to take a break." His face lit up with happiness at least that's what she expected but you know that things never turn as you expect them too.
"Huh? So now, we should do things according to your time? Oh, the mighty Kagome will pay attention to us, peasants when she takes a break. Well, guess what, I got things to do as well!"
"YOU WERE JUST PLAYING WITH ANTS! ANTS, FOR GOD'S SAKES!" Kagome screamed from the top of her lungs.
He paused for a second, searching for a comeback but failed to find one. So, he just resorted to the snobbiest excuse ever. "My business is my business. You go back to your studying." He shook his hand as if shooing her away. "If you were thinking of bossing me missy, it's never going to happen."
Kagome shook her head with annoyance. "Ugh! Why does everything have to be so impossible with you, Inuyasha?! Why can't you just think that maybe I also thought that it was a good idea for us to spend time together?
He didn't reply to her but instead chose a different lane. "Dear Lord, so tired of all this. It's hot too, so I can't even do anything." He continued, "Man, so bored," He looked at Kagome from the corner of his eyes and continued, "Darn it! I knew I should have gone with Miroku and Sango. What a waste of time being around... Huh!" Kagome's face stiffened as she heard his last sentence.
"Oh, I am sorry that I have a test to study for! But you see, I also am not that much thrilled for being left behind! It's not like I asked for it! And I did not even ask you to wait back with me. You were the one who decided that." She folded her hands and waited for his reply.
He sat up and replied with the same vigour. "Yeah, well I had to! Roaming around with the shards of jewel... do you think it'd be a walk in the park? Who the hell is going to protect them?!"
"Well, I can protect the jewel and myself just fine! No need for you to be so helpful!" She spoke with spite.
"Yeah, right! You can't even shoot right with your stupid arrows and you're saying that 'I can do it!'" He said the last words as he did her impression.
This agitated her more. "I have to shoot the arrows at a certain point! It requires a lot of concentration and I have to do it in the middle of a fight! You, on the other hand, just say 'Tessaiga!' and move it as if it's a broom and that's it! Huh!" Kagome shouted from the bottom of her stomach. "And I do not speak like that!" She replied to the impression he did of hers before.
He looked at her with disbelief. "How dare you speak of Tessaiga so lightly!" Kagome just huffed in return. "Don't compare yours to mine! Mine is much harder. Do you know how much strength it takes just to move and attack with Tessaiga? It's just me that who makes it look so effortless." Inuyasha spoke with pride. "You are just a whiner, Kagome. You are always doing this. And if I prove you wrong, you 'Sit' me and end the subject." Inuyasha said with a surprisingly serious tone.
'Dumbass...' Kagome thought while gritting her teeth. She listened and processed what he said for a minute so that she could give him a proper reply.
'Me, a whiner? No ways! It's valid. I live in two worlds, adjusting two appearances. I am 15-years-old and I am fighting demons! Not that I am complaining but I am not from here and that makes it so hard. Not getting to see my family, never even knowing when the next time would be to see them, and if there even would be a next time. Fighting with this moron. It's incredibly stressful...'
And so, she was ready with her comeback but then she heard a sound. She saw that Inuyasha... had slapped himself.
'What the hell is going on?' Kagome stared at Inuyasha with widened eyes. 'Is he... regretting what he just said? And that's why he slapped himself? Oh...' Kagome's heart began to swell at the weird but sweet way of expressing his sorrow.
"Inuyasha... stop. You don't have to-" She spoke warmly, her anger now melted away but she froze the minute she saw what had actually happened...
"Master Inuyasha, Kagome! How good it is to see you. Are you two fighting again?" Both of them gave out a 'Huh!' and turned their faces away from each other.
'Oh, so it's Myouga who bit Inuyasha's cheek... and I was thinking... yeah as if that'd ever happen.'
"I heard your fight a little, and I think both of you are great fighters and should not compare yourself to each other," Myouga said while coming back to his normal size and sitting on the ground.
"Still, it's hard to be me. All of them are like my responsibility. I have to protect the whole group as if... I am their father..?" Inuyasha wanted to say something great but this F-word came out of his mouth.
"Oh yeah? Well, I have to keep the Shikon jewels together as if they are my life! And I also have to live two lives!" Kagome fought back.
"So, basically," Myouga said thoughtfully. "Both of you perform the duties of a mother and a father would, in a family. So that would mean, you two are..." As soon as the other two heard that, their faces turned crimson and Myouga let out a laugh.
"Wh... wel... that's not... So, umm Myouga how come you are here?" Kagome struggled with words as she tried to hide her blush whereas Inuyasha opted for being quiet only after flicking Myouga.
"I am on a journey for the western lands and as I was travelling, the village was in my path. So I thought I could pay a visit." Myouga explained as he rubbed his forehead where Inuyasha had flicked him and Kagome nodded.
"So... travelling in this hot weather. Must be hard no?" Kagome chose the trendiest topic: Weather. 'Man, I cannot wait to get back home and sit in front of the damn AC all day long.'
Myouga replied to her, "Actually, no. It's so cool. In fact, I was thinking of taking a scarf now to cover myself." Kagome raised her eyebrow at Myouga's statement. In such extreme heat, how could Myouga even think and feel that it was cool?
"That is because of this." In order to explain the current circumstances to Kagome as he saw the dumbfounded look on her face, he, as if on cue, took out one tiny bottle that looked like a sake's, whose size expanded as soon as it came out of Myouga's bundle.
"What's this?" Kagome asked Myouga while observing the brownish bottle which looked almost ancient. 'Well, we are in the ancient period.'
"This is a normal bottle but what's inside it is truly a thing to be amazed for." Kagome nodded as Inuyasha continued listening to them with his eyes closed.
"The reason I am not feeling any of this heat and feeling like it's the season of winter is because the fluid which is in this bottle," Myouga continued, "has been fetched from an enchanted lake," Myouga said the last two words as if he was doing a magic spell.
"An enchanted lake?" Kagome repeated.
"Yes Kagome, an enchanted lake. That lake has the superiority, meaning the ability to quench the thirst of the person who drinks it until that certain person can find any other source of water. In other words, the water of this lake almost gives life to the travellers."
Kagome gave him another surprised look. 'Wait, why am I so surprised? This should be like an everyday thing for me. Magical lakes, flying cats, ghostly priestesses being an obstacle between you and the boy you like... Ahem, well, that was kinda off-topic.'
"So where is this lake?" Kagome inquired, in a way assuring Myouga that she was following the conversation.
"It does not have a certain place but it is found in the desert on the other side of the river Tsurumi. The person who is very thirsty is able to find the lake near to them." Myouga explained as silence followed.
"But then it should have been famous since many people travel through that desert, so they all must've drunk the waters of that lake, right? I mean, everyone gets thirsty in deserts." Kagome asked Myouga after some moments as she processed what he said.
"No, that's not it," Myouga explained, "Very few people are able to actually drink the water of the lake. I am aware that I said that "the person who is very thirsty is able to find the lake near them" I agree that everyone gets very thirsty in deserts, but there is one phenomenon called Mirage which happens a lot there. You know mirage?"
Kagome nodded and so Myouga continued, "When due to extreme thirst and lack of water people are almost on the verge of death, this lake would appear at places close enough where the person can find it. But many times, as the person already experienced mirages of lakes, streams, rivers, they end up thinking that this lake, is also a mirage. And thus, they miss the chance of drinking the water."
"So you were thirsty and it just came in front of you?" This time Inuyasha asked the question.
"Well no, Master Inuyasha," Myouga replied with a smile, happy that his young master was also interested. "I believe I said 'They find the lake near them.' It didn't just come and dance in front of me. By wandering here and there, I found the lake. Perhaps it was fully well-planned by that lake for me to find it."
"How come you didn't think it was a mirage?" Kagome asked.
Myouga explained that he had checked all of the mirages no matter how hard it was doing so. "You never know." He said. When he was almost close to dying, he checked the last one, this enchanted lake, and it saved his life. "Always try and never cry."
"Ooooo." Voice echoed from Kagome's mouth. "Sooooooo, how did it feel to drink the water from that enchanted lake?"
"It was a heavenly experience." Myouga quickly replied as he was expecting this question to pop up. "When I drank the water it was like... it was like I was drinking something like nectar. It felt like all my worries, all my tensions, pain were going away only to give me a silent, quiet and beautiful feeling. A magical experience!"
"Oh man, I would've loved some as well." She gave a smile as she spoke politely.
"I am glad you would because I have brought some for you and Master Inuyasha."
"W-What? How could you?" She asked and in return, she got some questionable glances.
"I mean it's great that you brought the water. But when it comes to this 'Holy things' aren't there some conditions or something?" She gave inverted commas to the words holy things by her hands, which was not understood by the others.
"That... is a very good question. And I...don't have an answer for that... so let's just drink it." Kagome laughed at Myouga's stupidity but she agreed upon drinking it.
"I have brought some for the rest of the company too, but where are they?" Myouga asked while looking around while looking for bowls in his bundle.
'What is that bundle of his? Hermione's beaded handbag? How the hell is it carrying all this stuff?' Kagome wondered as she glanced at the ochokos (Japanese sake bowls), that also grew back to regular size.
Inuyasha answered Myouga, "Sango and Miroku are gone to another village to take care of a demon and Shippo is accompanying them."
The flea demon nodded, kind of surprised at how his master was able to talk properly without throwing any mean jibe around.
"So can we drink it?" Kagome asked him little greedily as the way Myouga described the water felt really, really nice.
"Of course! Here take it. Master Inuyasha, you also taste some."
''Yeah. yeah.'' Inuyasha acted as if he didn't care at all but in fact, he was pretty excited too. 'Holy water, eh?' He thought to himself, clearly looking forward to drinking it.
Myouga handed the ochokos to the teenagers as well as taking some for himself. The three of them glanced at each other- Myouga with a smile whereas, Inuyasha and Kagome, with slight anxiety on their faces.
Now that the moment was upon them, doubts began to surface in their minds.
'Is it safe to drink this? I mean, this was meant to be found by the travellers in deserts... we clearly did not travel in the desert... and Myouga fetched it meaning took more than he required... greed... maybe, what if this water is cursed now? Such things don't come for free..' Kagome, in doubt, thought of all the consequences that could happen.
She looked at Inuyasha, who was also doubtful, was checking the water in his ochoko.
"Kagome, don't worry. I assure you nothing will go wrong. I would never do anything that would harm you or Master Inuyasha." Myouga assured Kagome and indirectly Inuyasha, as Myouga saw suspicion on their faces.
"Sorry, Myouga. We trust you." Kagome said with a smile. 'Besides, if that lake didn't want Myouga to take the water, it could have done something right there, right? And it didn't. Meaning the lake didn't mind Myouga fetching the water. So, this is safe...'
Kagome looked at the water in the bowl again and when she looked up, Inuyasha gave her a reassuring smile with a determined look on his face. She felt butterflies in her stomach and she also smiled back with a nod and a tint of blush.
"I saw that," Myouga spoke up with his eyes rolled. Instantly, the two teenagers turned red.
"L-Let's do it!" Kagome squealed loudly to change the subject and with the nod of a red Inuyasha and all three of them gulped it down their throats at the same time- Myouga drinking swiftly but the other two slowly and with a slight bit of hesitation.
All three of them put the bowls down on the grass, finished. Myouga counted the time...
1.
2..
3...
And then it finally arrived, that heavenly feeling... All three had a look of eternal happiness on their faces. Their bodies were getting relaxed by each minute. All the heat around them, sweat on their bodies, their thirst, hunger, all this disappeared in a minute. They could no more feel anything except for the chilly feeling giving them goosebumps. As if wrapped in a chilly and soft blanket, they were now oblivious to any surge in temperature around them.
"Oh my god, it really is a heavenly experience! I am feeling so relaxed!" Kagome exclaimed as she continued experiencing the effect of the drink.
"Hell yeah! I've got to admit it's really good!" Inuyasha exclaimed, clearly impressed by the magical effect of the water. "I am feeling nothing but... dizzy? ..." He couldn't complete his sentence as his surroundings became blurry.
"I know! It's good, right?" Myouga said cheerfully. "Wait, did you say dizzy?"
"What's happening? I am losing my bal- balance..." Kagome was in the same condition as Inuyasha.
"Kagome, uh, wait. Don't fall asleep. This.. mus... be a tr- trap." Inuyasha tried to grab his Tessaiga but couldn't as he was losing his consciousness.
"It's normal. Don't worry, you are just feeling the magic of the wat-" Myouga tried to relieve them by saying it was okay but he couldn't as Kagome fell on the ground.
"Kagome! Wake up! Kago-" Inuyasha called out to Kagome but he also ended up falling on the ground. The worrying words of Myouga were ringing in the background and Inuyasha tried to keep his eyes open but he failed and lied unconscious on the ground.
*After some hours *
It was late in the evening when Kagome opened her chocolate orbs. The sun was going to set at any minute by then. It was somewhat dark but there was light too. Kagome sat up and recalled recent events.
'Yeah, we drank that water. But why did we fall unconscious? Maybe it was expected. It was a nice nap anyways.' Kagome thought with a smile. She stretched her body while looking around. Myouga was nowhere to be seen.
'He must've left for his journey. We should go too. It's getting kind of late.' Kagome thought and reached over to the body lying next to her.
It took Kagome a minute to adjust her eyes in the dark and to look at the person lying beside her. They were wearing a white sailor shirt, a green skirt, white socks and... wait a second...
"OH MY GOD!" Kagome shouted as she saw her body lying next to her. 'What the hell? What's going on? Why am I sleeping there when my body is here!' Kagome asked herself and looked at her body and her eyes went round.
"OH MY GOD!" The girl, now shouted from the bottom of her belly as she saw that she was not in her own body but-
"Why the hell are you shouting, woman? Keep your voice down a little, will ya? I am already feeling a little dizzy." The body next to Kagome spoke to her and sat up while rubbing its head as Kagome continued to stare at him with shock.
"Inuyasha...? Is that you?" Kagome's voice faltered with worry.
"Duh. Now, shut up. Can't you see that I already am not feeling-" Inuyasha finally looked at Kagome while rubbing his head and now shared the same expression as hers.
"WHAT?! What's my body doing there when it's he-" He looked down at his own body to say that it was his body but he couldn't as, it wasn't.
"OH DEAR HOLY GOOOD!" Inuyasha screamed in a sweet, girly tone and his voice echoed through the whole forest.
"Have we," Kagome asked in a low tone mixed with fear, puzzlement and surprise,
..."Swapped bodies?"
[DAY 1]
Don't forget to tell me how it was! Next update will be coming soon. Also, about the river Tsurumi, I just wrote a name that came to my mind. There is a real one. But no such myths or deserts are known about it. I made it up. So, bye till then. Thank you!