Hey everybody, I'm back!
Sorry for the delay; I was busy doing some editing and decluttering in my doc manager with the chapters I did have in there. But the major bulk of it is done, so I'll be able to get back to typing up new stuff.
So, quick disclaimer before this chapter begins:
I do not own any references to Detective Conan/Cased Closed! (as neither did those who created and produced this story's original anime/manga). Such rights and ownership belong to its creator, Gosho Aoyama.
All good? Great! Curtain up!
Chapter 98: Souta's Brave Confession of Love
Come another day in modern Tokyo, and the last leg of Coraline's cold will have come to pass. In the time following the rest of yesterday to today, she will have not only gotten some more of her online schoolwork finished (being careful not to overexert her mentality, as per the orders of her brothers and boyfriend), but also uncovered a new piece to the puzzle that was the mysterious artifact she was asked to help investigate by Professor Hashimoto...
Currently, the redhead was focused on rising out of bed and greeting the sun's rays casting over the Higurashi Shrine and Residence, opening her window to let the fresh air gently blow inside.
"(Inhale) Aah, another good-looking day, and I can finally go outside and enjoy it! That stupid cold can go suck it, and Lady Luck blessed me with an old text that might have some information about the Sword of Tengu..."
Coraline turns her once again bright blue eyes to Inuyasha, who was sitting by the second window adjacent left.
"And I have you and your medicine to thank for it. I really owe you an arm and leg, Inuyasha."
He replies gruffly,
"Yeah, whatever..."
"And, not just for helping me get better, but, for being that listening ear the night before last..."
The dog demon's face colours a little with a blush:
"Kuh, right, well, if you're all better, then I won't bother hangin' around any longer..."
Coraline pouted a bit:
"Aww, really?"
She moves from the window, and kneels by the Inuyasha before quirking with a small smile,
"Because I was hopin' you'd stick around long enough to help me shop downtown."
"Huh?"
Curious of seeing more of the city from a pedestrian perspective as well as the invitation from his girl, Inuyasha decided to go along with her...Once she was dressed out of her pajamas, opting for an outfit of a yellow tank-top, her red jean jacket, a pair of soft blue jeans and her hikers, Coraline would grab a few cloth bags from the bin by the stairs to the upper rooms before gently tugging the dog demon towards the door, with the twins seeing them off.
"You guys headin' out?"
"Yeah. You two stayin' here?" Besa replies,
"Mhm. One of us is gonna pop to Edo to let everyone know you're okay, then we're helping Mister Higurashi with setting up traps in one of the storehouses."
Coraline makes a face:
"Aw no, are the rats coming back?"
"Looks like."
"Crap...Alright, well, good luck to you guys."
"(Both twins) Thanks."
(Ka-chank)
As the couple made their way down the stairs of the shrine, Coraline mutters,
"You'd think Buyo would be enough to scare any possible rodents away..."
Inuyasha scoffs,
"Have ya seen that cat? He can't even chase his own shadow let alone a rat."
That comment made the redhead laugh, and he would join in a second after she began...A little while later, the two were deep into the city streets, walking along a more consumer district, where most citizens did their grocery shopping. By this point, Inuyasha's mood was teetering between boredom and sulking:
"How come I get stuck dragged all over your village like this?"
Coraline counters,
"Well, we do have a long journey ahead of ourselves, and I could use the help in finding the right supplies for the group."
"Didn't the guys already do some shopping a few days ago?"
"Yes, but not enough for everyone collectively. I also wanted to check out that book from the library before I lose the chance."
Inuyasha grumbles to himself with an ear-twitch,
"She's got a line for everything..."
"And besides..."
"Huh?"
The redhead turns to flash an endearing smile while adding,
"This also gives us an excuse to spend some time together without the entourage, you know what I mean?"
...The dog demon's cheeks highlight, and he looks away from Coraline's stare shyly, while she turns to face the front again with a giggle in her breath.
He acts so tough around everyone, but when it's just us one-on-one, his more sensitive side starts peeking out.
It'll probably be a long while before he'll be able to do it without retreating back into himself...
"(Turn) Say, Inuyas-Huh?"
But when she moves to meet his eyes again, she sees that the dog demon was gone.
"(Looks back and forth) Inuyasha? Inuyasha!...Oh!"
Coraline spots him again a few feet in front of her, sniffing at the glass of a bakery shop display:
"Uuuh, Inuyasha?"
The dog demon turns to her with an enthusiastic smile:
"Hey, Coraline! This is food, right?"
A random woman wearing a causal blue business jacket and skirt combo walks past the two, chuckling a bit under her breath while looking at Inuyasha, causing Coraline to smile a bit nervously and say with her own giggle,
"Ah-heh, he's still a little new to the city, and gets excited about new things..."
Hoh boy, should'a seen this coming...
Shaking her head with amusement, the redhead walks over to the sliver-haired dog demon and lightly pulls him along.
"Come on, we need to keep going down this street. But if we have time, we'll circle back and I'll introduce you to the cinnamon buns they serve at this bakery."
"Cinn-a-mon buns?"
"Yeah! It's a type of bread made with a spice called cinnamon mixed with icing sugar. They're really tasty."
"Mm, sounds good...So what's the name of this place we're goin' first?"
"The supermarket."
They eventually made it to the tall building after a couple more blocks, and as they passed through the push doors, Coraline asks while grabbing a hand basket,
"So, starting off with you, Inuyasha, what's number one on your craving list?"
"Ninja food!"
"(Laugh) Yeah, I figured that would be your answer."
Once they were fully into the aisles, Inuyasha was in awe of the stocked shelves of food, ranging from conventional, processed products to fresh vegetables, fruit and meat...The redhead silently laughed behind her hand at her boyfriend's starry eyes, before getting them back on track:
"Alright, so we need to head to where the ramen is...Four shelves right, if I'm not mistaken."
She takes the dog demon's hand to lightly drag him in that direction, causing him to exclaim,
"Hey," before his cheeks burned up again from the gesture...
Inuyasha's attention would then be directed to the large stacks of boxes containing many different brands and flavours of the instant noodles.
"Wooow, look at 'em all!"
"Which one catches your eye?"
"This is gonna be a tough decision..."
He examines the rows of ramen with his arms folded and an inquisitive expression on his face, a sweatdrop quickly forming from having so many to choose from. Sensing this might take a little time, Coraline claps a hand on his shoulder and says,
"I'll leave you to think. When you've got it, meet me in the meat section."
"Mhm..."
Small Time Skip, Coraline's POV
Okay, that took a bit more time than usual...
We finally exited the supermarket once we got everything we needed from there, but while I was carrying one large cloth bag filled with some wrapped meat (chicken to be exact), vegetables and a few sweets, Inuyasha was carrying three boxes (the largest filled with beef-flavored ramen) that were stacked tall enough to obstruct his view. I look back and ask rhetorically with a sheepish smile,
"Um, is it possible we might've overdone the shopping just a bit on the supermarket alone?"
He peeks his face from behind the boxes and replies with a sarcastic grunt,
"That's an understatement!"
I sweatdrop and mutter inside my head while focusing back up front,
Oh dear. Now we definitely need to stop back at that bakery.
Hopefully, a new treat will cool him down a little, as well as the promise of not having to carry anything else after this...
"...Hm?"
It was then something catches my eye, causing me to stop, and Inuyasha to bump into me while nearly letting the boxes fall to the pavement.
"Gah! Thanks for nothin'! What'd ya stop like that for?!"
I quickly turn and help him set the stack down on the ground for a moment, before straightening up and pointing to what caught my eye.
"Over there."
"Huh?"
Across the street in front of the local florist shop...was Souta, looking at some of the bouquets. I raised a brow while wondering,
What on earth could've possessed him to stop at a flower shop of all places?
One of Inuyasha's claws then lightly pokes my shoulder, prompting me to turn to his form that was leaning causally against the red brick wall of one of the shops.
"Mind explaining why we're just standin' here? Not that I mind a pause from carryin' those boxes, but still..."
"I'm just, curious about Souta. (Narrows eyes) This is a new level of weird for him, stopping at a florist..."
With the traffic in an equally-odd slow period for the afternoon, I was just able to make out the words of the florist who came out to talk to my little brother.
"Looking for a gift? Do you see anything you like?"
Though I couldn't see his face, he must've had an expression on his face similar to Inuyasha's when he was stuck on deciding what ramen to get, for the woman just adds a touch nervously,
"Well, you let me know if you decide on anything..."
She then walks away, leaving Souta to stare at a pot of pink-petaled flowers (I think they might be the Pinkfairies Clarkia), almost turning to move on his way from the shop before stopping himself to stare some more. By this time, Inuyasha was getting interested in his behaviour, stepping a bit from the wall to stand beside me while one of his hands rested on my shoulders.
"What's he doin' over there?"
I smiled a little at the hand gesture, before placing one of my own palms overtop and whispering back,
"Can't say for sure, but he's definitely got his eye on those pink ones..."
It was then three girls about my kid brother's age turn the corner from the other side of the shop and walk to Souta's direction, prompting him to duck behind some of the potted plants.
Huh? Now what's he doing?
I shift my focus over to the young girls coming up:
The first on the right had straight black hair cut into a bop just ending at her earlobes with a light green barrette clipped on her left bang, tan-peach skin, dark brown eyes, and wore a light green/white striped t-shirt, tan-brown shorts and brown shoes with long white socks.
Girl number two in the middle had a paler complexion, light freckling around her nose, with long black hair tied into two little braids with red ribbons, dark blue eyes, and wore a light blue sleeveless shirt with a mustard yellow ribbon tied under the collar like a tie, a white skirt that went to her knees, and powder blue sneakers with folded over cream-coloured socks.
Finally, the third girl on the left had wavy, dark brown hair cut into a bob that went a little past her ears, peachy pale skin, cobalt blue eyes, and wore a plain white shirt, high-collared with a bit of ruffling on the end cuffs, a cream sweater shrug over top tied on with a thin red ribbon, a pink skirt with light lacy ruffling that was the tiniest bit shorter than knee-length, and long white socks with light pink Mary Jane shoes.
"Yeah, and then what happened?"
"I accidentally stepped right into the pail, right up to my knee and I ended up getting totally soaked!"
The first and third girl laugh lightly at their friend's tale as she adds,
"I could've killed dad for leaving it there! What a lame-brain he is sometimes..."
Her friends chide,
"Sounds like my dad..."
"You're lucky you didn't twist your ankle."
"Actually, I told him that I did twist it. You should've seen how white he turned!"
The three girls giggle at the thought, and I found myself smiling sadly as I thought of my own father:
I was definitely daddy's little girl in those old days, and he always got panicky whenever I showed any signs of physical injury, no matter how many times I braved a smile that said I was okay...just to make sure, his heart wasn't aching over more than, the struggle to keep going without mother...
I give myself a mental headshake, tucking away those bittersweet thoughts, and focus back on why I was looking across the street, noticing that Souta's gaze was fixated on the girl with wavy brown hair as she and her friends passed on without seeing him...
"Weird..."
"Huh..."
"...Well, I dunno what's running through his head, but I guess we'll find out later at home, won't we?"
"Keh, right...So, is there anywhere else we need to stop at?"
I take the smallest box off of the stack to carry over my shoulder and left the other two for Inuyasha to grab, while replying,
"Just the library so I can check out that book, and Hōjō's Herbal for some extra medical supplies."
Now that his face wasn't as covered, I could make out a mild scowl that formed on my boyfriend's face at the mention of the second location.
"Oh. That right?...Is that guy going to be there?"
"Uh, probably not 'til later since it's a school day...(Frown) And whether he being there or not shouldn't matter. Need I remind you that he is in his own relationship with a girl and knows that we're in our own?"
We're walking alongside eachother by this point, and Inuyasha stutters defensively,
"O-Of course I remember! Sheesh, I'm not that dense..."
"(Light sigh) Never said you were..."
One thing's for sure: When it comes to being possessive, Inuyasha can and will make it public.
...But that might not be a bad thing all the time. Just means he cares.
Time Skip, No POV
By the time evening casts its mix of orange, pink and red hues through the sky, Coraline and Inuyasha will have returned from their shopping trip with the supplies they scoured for to add to the haul for the journey ahead in Edo, and were now sitting with the Higurashi Family and the twins at the dinner table to eat. By this point, the 'trio pest patrol' (aka Grandfather Higurashi, Besa and Freeman) had finished refurbishing, cleaning and re-trap-setting the storehouse that had been broken into by some rats, and were eating their portion of the meal with both hearty appetites and tired bodies.
"Haaah, well, that took alot longer than usual. Thank you again, boys, for assisting me with the problem."
"Think nothing of it, sir...Ugh, but how those rats got into the storehouse this round is beyond me..."
Freeman agreed with Besa's thought with as much exasperation:
"I know, right? They must've used a chisel to get past the quick-dry cement lining between the crawlspaces where they broke in last time!"
Coraline glances over at her older brothers with an amused smile and quirks,
"Actually, a rat's jaws and teeth are more powerful than they look: They can chew through concrete like it's made of rice cakes, or at least the European species are well-known to."
"What?" "Aw come on, that's not fair at all!"
She laughs a little at their mixed expressions of disgruntlement and disbelief, while Inuyasha rolled his eyes and comments,
"Kuh, well if they're anything like the demon variety I've seen a few times, then it'll take more than those mouse traps to get rid of 'em..."
But while the four older youths were engaged in lightly-animated conversation, the youngest Higurashi family member was in a listless daze, sighing quietly at his bowl of rice...Akari would ask about it with that motherly worried frown:
"What's the matter with you, Souta? Have you lost your appetite?"
"U-Uh, (shakes his head) no, nothing's the matter, Mom..."
The elder of the household saw otherwise, and hms before pulling out a pink-shaded, shell-like scale from his robes.
"Maybe this will help you, my boy."
"What's that thing?"
"A mermaid's scale. It's been passed on for generations. Tape this scale to your navel before you go to bed and you'll be cured!"
Souta stares at the item for a few seconds...before taking it, only to turn around towards where the family cat was resting.
"...Bu~yo...You have it."
The cat bites his teeth onto the scale and starts walking away with it, much to the elder's panic:
"Aaah! No, no-no-no, wait! Get back here; give me that thing...!"
While he chased Buyo around the table to get the scale back, Souta decides to leave his dinner behind.
"(Mumble) May I be excused?"
"It's a family heirloom!"
Akari watches the young boy go with a perplexed expression:
"Wonder what's gotten into him?"
By this time, Freeman had scooped up the cat with a free hand and took back the scale to give back to Grandfather Higurashi.
"Here. You might wanna start reconsidering who you give these items to if they're just gonna end up the cat's..."
The elder smirk-glares at the cheeky comment:
"Hmph. Very funny, young man...(Turns with a frown) Anyway, to answer your question, Akari, something tells me he's not feeling well..."
"Eh, it's nothing to be overly concerned about."
"Hm?"
The adults turn to look at Coraline, who shrugs and comments,
"It's more an affliction than an illness, sent by Cupid's arrow to be precise."
"Cupid's arrow?!"
Akari smiles and chimes with a smile,
"Wonderful! I'll make red bean rice to celebrate!"
Coraline almost chokes on her food, and Grandfather adds,
"If you were in school, child, that would be a good excuse to get out of class!"
"What?! Psh, would not!"
"Any teacher would be fooled!"
"This isn't the fifties, grandfather: None of the teachers today could ever be that dim!"
While those two got into a silly debate, Inuyasha bends his head towards Besa to ask in a whisper,
"Uuh, who's this Cupid person?"
"I can explain, but first, let's finish eating and take this to a quieter room..."
Small Time Skip, Inuyasha's POV
It's now nighttime, and I'm heading up the stairs to Coraline's room, leaving Besa behind in the living room after he gave me an explanation about Cupid and his symbolic role for this holiday celebrating Love called Val-en-tine's Day.
Well, that was a weird learning moment: So there's supposingly this guy with wings that can control how people love another by using a bow and quiver?
(Shakes head) Humans from the West have the craziest imaginations...
I let out a yawn as I come up to the upper corridor, only to see the kid, Souta, waiting for me:
"...Say, Inuyasha?"
"Hm? What is it?"
"Can I, uh, talk to you?"
"About what?"
"It's kind of a, man-to-man thing..."
That only served to confuse me more...but I could tell he was serious, so we head out the glass door to sit in the courtyard and talk. Only problem was, the kid kept his mouth shut for an annoyingly long amount of time:
Geez, what's with him? Does he wanna say what's wrong, or doesn't he?
After a couple more minutes, I stood up with an impatient grunt:
"If you're not gonna talk, then I'm goin'."
Souta tugs my sleeve to stop me from leaving:
"No, hang on!"
"What is it? Hurry up and talk if ya gotta!"
Gods, I should've grabbed one of the twins: They have a better tolerance to this nonsense than I do.
Just as I thought that, the kid asks me one question I wasn't prepared to answer:
"What is Love?"
"Guh!"
My face erupts in a blush as he pries,
"Is Love eternal?" I tug back my kimono and bark,
"What do ya mean; where's this comin' from?!"
Now I really wish one of the guys was out here and not me...!
"Tell me: Who said 'I love you' first? Was it you or Coraline?"
"Huh?!"
"So, who was it?"
I dart back to a sitting position with my arms folded and answer too quickly for my thoughts to connect out of embarrassment,
"I-I don't know; what're you askin' for?"
"Well, you are boyfriend and girlfriend, aren't you?"
My face heated up even more, I too stunned by the boldness of the question to even bop my head, no matter how much my inner voice yelled at me to do something.
Dude, just nod a little! What're you doin', you idiot?!
"Aren't you? Well if you weren't her boyfriend, Coraline wouldn't be risking her neck all the time to see you in your era. A-And you wouldn't come here to take care of her when she's sick..."
I could only sweat a bit nervously, secretly amazed by how intuitive this kid was...
"(Eager smile) So, who said it first? What did you say to her?"
For a second...I almost considered telling him, but I didn't for two reasons: One, it was embarrassing, and two, he still looked a bit young for this sort-a thing. Instead, I exclaimed defensively,
"Get off my back! As if I'd say mushy stuff like that to Coraline!"
...It didn't even come out like that either, looking back. I said what I wanted my own way, my version of sweet.
"You mean, Coraline told you first? W-Well, what did she say?"
I didn't so much deny the fact, but just muttered incoherently, feeling like I shouldn't just blindly spill out the day in question to just anybody...Souta took my reply differently, though:
"Come on, don't tell me neither of you had said anything..."
"G-Gh, what, are you talking, about?"
"So, you haven't?"
I fall backwards in exasperation before straightening up and finally getting a decent sentence out:
"Of course we have, ya little twerp! It's just not somethin' you go gabbin' to everyone about! You keep the words between you and your other, ya know? Like, a nice memory to look back on..."
That seemed to be a good enough answer for him:
"Ooooh...Sorry, I wasn't aware."
"Tch, whatever...Now what's mine and Coraline's love life gotta do with this 'man-to-man' talk?"
Although Im startin' to get a good guess to what this might be about...
"(Looks down) Well...it's just...I don't know what to do..."
"Huh?"
Yep, now I'm definitely sure I know what's happenin'...and it's not like I would know exactly what to do.
...I was on auto that day.
"The girl I'm talkin' about, is called, Hitomi..."
I didn't ask you, but at least we're gettin' somewhere...
Souta goes on describing this girl he's clearly pining over:
"She goes to my school; we're even in the same class, and she sits right next to me in the classroom...She one of the cutest girls I've ever seen, with great big eyes, her skin's so nice, she used to live overseas, she doesn't like parsley, a-and she never carries a backpack..."
For some reason, I felt a short-lived smile come to my lips at the words 'used to live overseas' and the way he described her appearance.
Kind-of sounds like a smaller and more innocent version of Coraline...
Shaking back to reality, I cut in before the kid went any further with the details:
"I hardly understood half of that, but basically you're telling me you love this Hitomi girl, right?"
He blushes before confirming,
"Yeah...but I don't have any idea if Hitomi feels the same way...So I figured...I should just, come out and tell her how I feel!"
My eyebrow twitches as I think to myself,
And you're telling me all this, because...?!
Again, Freeman or Besa would be better off speakin' with you, not me!
"You, gotta help me!"
Despite my thought, seeing and hearing how desperate the kid looked told me to stay put a bit longer:
"What do you want me to do?"
"Let me practice on you."
"Huh?!"
"Let me practice saying 'I love you' so I can say it to Hitomi..."
The further clarification didn't make me feel that much better...
"Please say yes..."
His eyes started shining in a pleading manner, making me twitch back a little in disbelief:
Shoot, that's a hard look to turn away from! Now I know where Coraline learned that trick...
Argh, damn me and my soft spot for kids...!
Sighing in exasperation, I hold up a single digit and grumble,
"Alright, but just once."
"Aw man, this is great!"
I'm gonna regret this, aren't I?
We both move to stand a few feet away from one another face-to-face to start the practice...and once again, we're greeted by a wall of silence...
"What's the matter? Hurry it up."
"I, dunno if I'm ready for this..."
"Kuh, if you're not going to say it, then I'm goin' in."
"Uh, n-no, don't leave me!"
I'm hauled back by my sleeve even harder than last time, and I look back at the kid with an annoyed growl, while he does that pleading expression with his eyes again...
So we try round two...and I finally get some sort of result:
"Mmmm...I...l-l-l-love, you. (Blushes with a shout) I love you!"
"Uhh, guys...?"
"Gh!" "Guh!"
Our heads turn back to the doorway, and standing there was Coraline, wearing a pair of soft black pants and matching tank-top, staring at us with a barely-contained amused expression, along with Freeman and Besa, they wearing matching soft grey pants with white t-shirts, who were too busy trying not to laugh. She then adds with a giggle in her tone,
"I understand there's the whole 'Bro-mance' concept, but this is taking it too far..."
All three of them then burst into laughter, making my face light up as red as my kimono in embarrassment.
Oh, gods...!
Once they calmed down some, we all moved into her room to talk about the situation, which only spiked more laughing from my girlfriend and her brothers...Souta whines in embarrassment as high as mine was a little bit ago,
"Aw come on, you guys don't have to laugh..."
"Oh, take it easy, little bro. It was such a ridiculous scene to walk in on, I couldn't help but laugh...But anyway, you should've just came to me from the start."
I look up at Coraline with Souta, as she chimes with a smile,
"Inuyasha's perspective on how a girl's feelings work doesn't always run deep. He's had a few lucky moments, but out of the two of us, I usually pick up on the emotional atmosphere faster than he does."
"Well of course you know more than me; you're a girl!"
Freeman argues,
"That isn't always true: Men can pick up on emotional cues as quick as women can. It's all in how you're taught and what interests a person."
I frown at him skeptically, while Besa cuts in with his own words:
"All that aside, we can all lend you a hand or two, Souta. Four heads are better than one."
The other two nod vigorously, and the kid and I look to one another apprehensively:
I dunno about this...
Coraline's POV
Wow. I knew that this topic would come up for Souta eventually, but I never expected it to be this early in his life...
After promising and assuring my younger brother that I would do what I could to help, he leaves for bed in his room, leaving me and the guys to brainstorm ideas for a plan of action...
It would be at least forty-five minutes before we could agree on the details, and with that done, my other brothers left the room to get some shut-eye, leaving just me and Inuyasha. He asks me with a raised brow,
"Are you guys sure ya know what you're doin'? I could barely follow half of that babble..."
"Like Besa said, it's good to have multiple minds to tackle a problem...(Nervous smile) Though we're really just doing our best to wing it: Dealing with one's personal love life is one thing, but meddling in another's can be a little taxing, especially when you factor in age."
"Kuh, hasn't stopped ya from trying to meddle with Sango and Miroku."
"That's precisely my point: Those two are a bit easier to read since they're in our age category and are relatively at the same maturity level as we are (even with Miroku's immaturity tendencies with women in general...). I'm getting to be eight years Souta's senior, and he's just dipping his toe into the realm of romantic relationships, which in my opinion, he's doing a little too soon."
Inuyasha folds his arms with a concentrating hm...before asking,
"How too soon is too soon, really?"
"Mm...That's a fair question...I can't speak as an expert on the mind's psyche, but honest opinion, any major leaps in how one feels for another before hitting double-digits just sounds too early. I mean, heh, it's cute to have a crush on someone when you're little, but to go in too deep before you really understand the subject itself isn't always a good idea...(Blush) especially if it's before 'The Sex Talk'."
Oh god, did I seriously just blurt that last part?!
I look over and see Inuyasha bulge his eyes at me with a crimson blush dusting his face, sputtering incoherently without forming an actual sentence...
Yep, I did. Crap...
But you know...circling back a little on this conversation...
There's actually a question, I've meant to ask him...but would it be too personal?
...Oh you know what, what the hell? We're kind-of talking about age anyway.
"Um...Inuyasha?"
Snapping out of his daze, he asks me,
"What is it?"
"...Seeing as we're, on the topic of age...there's something I've been curious of for a long time. A, question I wanted to ask you..."
"Oh? What?"
I slip out of my desk chair and move to kneel in front of Inuyasha before bringing out my question, using a careful tone incase he became offended.
"...How old are you, truly, going by human numerals?"
"Huh?"
"I know physically, you're likely about Freeman and Besa's ages, but, I was wondering in terms of the actual years going by, how much time has passed for you...(Looks down) I-If you'd rather not answer, I understand."
...The room goes quiet for a moment, and I steal a peek up from the floor to see that Inuyasha...was in deep thought.
Oh...He's actually thinking about it. Does that mean he's not offended?
After about ten, fifteen minutes, he opens his eyes and meets my blue irises with his amber while answering,
"I dunno...I, kind-a lost track of the years as time went on. I didn't really see my agin' as a priority as I grew up, mostly since I had to focus on stayin' alive...But, I think I'm somewhere around, maybe two-hundred years old, give or take? That's my best guess."
My eyes widen a little in wonder from his answer...before I lightly half-smirk and joke in good nature,
"Well I must say, you certainly look good for roughly two-hundred."
He smirks back with a smug chuckle:
"Well, duh. I am half-demon, after all: True, our aging time's not as slow as the full deal, but we're pretty close. It'll still be a long time comin' before I really start to look as old as my number..."
The boastfulness in his tone as well as his wording made me giggle a bit, causing him to eye me with a slightly annoyed expression.
"What? What's so funny?"
"It's nothing, really. It's just, you sound about as smug as you were back when you first relayed the whole 'not gonna get old for a long time' sentence to me and Kaede during the first few days we knew eachother..."
"Uh...You really remember that far back?"
The softness in his tone as he asked made my heart swell a bit, and I smile meaningfully at him before answering similarly,
"Of course. I remember everything from the beginning of my whole adventure in Edo. The good, the bad, all the way back to the first time I went down the well, (mumble) even though technically I was dragged in by that nutty centipede demon..."
I hear a chuckle quietly bubble in Inuyasha's throat, and I add,
"One of my favourite, earliest memories was when I first laid eyes on you at the Goshinboku Tree, before you woke up...Uh!"
I slapped my hands over my mouth, realizing what I just said, as my face burns with a blush of embarrassment.
Cripes, I gotta remember to think things through before saying them so casually...!
I dared to dart my eyes back up at Inuyasha, and saw that his expression was stuck in surprise...Neither of us said a word more for a few minutes, and just stared into eachother's eyes...
...But then:
"...Why?"
"H-Huh?"
"Why, is that your favourite memory of the early days?"
"Um...I guess, it was the tranquility of the atmosphere, and how...peaceful you looked, even with the arrow. Somehow, I just, knew you weren't...dead, but frozen in sleep by some out-worldly force...A-And your appearance, was unlike anyone I've ever seen. (Sheepish smile) You took my breath away."
I could see his ears twitching a little in happiness (I've slowly learned they do that with some of his stronger emotions), but then he looked down with an expression I never thought I'd see on his face: Insecure.
"...A half-demon like me, actually took your breath away?"
"You still do."
"Uh..."
He looks back up at me, and I place a hand on his cheek while chiding,
"I would think a smart guy like you would get it by now: Blood doesn't mean a damn thing to me. You're what I believe to be a perfect balance of human and demon, regardless of any flaws. You see through a grey scope and not the binary black and white like most regular humans and regular demons would...Overall, I love you inside and out."
"...Coraline..."
We ran out of words, and consummated our love for one another with a kiss, leaning into one another with no hesitation whatsoever. The feeling of his lips against mine...is so addicting, always leaving me wanting more. This time round felt, a bit more needy, more...heated, or it certainly felt that way when he suddenly pushed me to the floor, hovering overtop me with his hands pinning my wrists by my sides, somehow not breaking the kiss.
"Mph!"
O-Oh my gosh...!
I was caught well-enough off-guard that Inuyasha would easily slip his tongue into my mouth, making me moan a bit loudly, while he lets out a low, feral growl of approval. One of his hands then releases a wrist and opted for gripping my waist, squeezing it every couple seconds while he dragged the claws of his other hand lightly on the skin of my neck and very close to my chest...
Thankfully, he wouldn't go any further than that for both our sakes, and after another breathtaking minute, we parted from the kiss, both of us flushed and breathing a bit heavy.
"Hah, hah...Wow..."
"Hah...Double wow..."
We chuckled a little on my line, as he lifted himself off of me while pulling me up with him and into his lap, tucking me into his arms as I hugged him around his middle. Both of us were smiling as we held eachother close, and I quietly quirk,
"I think that was one of our best kisses yet, (giggle)..."
"Agreed...and I can't wait for the next one."
I pull back and lightly punch his shoulder with a playful smirk:
"Inuyasha!"
"(Chuckle) What'd ya expect me to say? I am a guy."
Sighing with an eyeroll, I say to him,
"You're lucky I'm a bit more laid back and understanding of the guy mind and not one of those snooty, stick-up-their-butt girls."
He teases back,
"I dunno about that: You do have your buzzkill moments."
"Oh please, I'm far from being a proper lady, if that's where you're going."
We break into another moment of laughter, careful that we weren't too loud as to wake up anyone else in the house (I'd never hear the end of it from anyone here, not even Grandfather...), before I let out a tiny yawn while rubbing one my eyes.
"Hmm, looks like someone needs to head to bed..."
"Oh shush, you...but you're right: I should get to sleep before it becomes too late in the evening...Will you, lay with me?"
Chuckling a little at my shy tone, Inuyasha replies,
"Sure."
He then shifts me to hold an arm under my legs and another around my waist, before standing up and walking to my bed while carrying me. The blankets were already tucked back, exposing the mattress, so all he had to do was lay me down while tucking my legs under some of the sheet and duvet, before climbing in on the left side shortly after and tugging them over both our bodies. I cuddled into his chest, feeling his warmth surround my own, and shut my eyes while whispering,
"Goodnight, Inuyasha."
Just before I fell asleep completely, I felt his arm wrap around my waist and his lips brush my forehead:
"...Goodnight, Coraline."
And just like that, we both take the trip to dreamland.
Time Skip, No POV
Come the next morning, the three modern teens would start their work on helping Souta with his crush crisis, the first plan involving a new wardrobe. He was now wearing a dark blue coat over a very light blue-white shirt, a red bow tie, a pair of grey blue shorts, and his nicest red/white sneakers with folded back white socks.
"Are you sure about this...?"
Freeman, his day outfit being a form-fit grey t-shirt, skinny-fit blue jeans and his signature black/white high-tops, kneels down to do a last adjustment on the youth's tie while assuring,
"Positive. In order to succeed in your goals of life, ya gotta dress like you know what you're doing. Besides, I hear that Detective Conan's still pretty popular among kids like you..."
Once the teen stands up again, Besa, he wearing a dark blue t-shirt with a flame design in the middle, lazy-fit black jeans and his own matching high-tops, comes outside with a bouquet of the Pinkfairies Clarkia that Souta was looking at in the florist shop yesterday, the former having ran down to get them earlier this morning as per Coraline's directions.
"There you are."
"(Takes flowers) You guys..."
Coraline, she wearing an outfit of a crop-cut red tank-top, an unbuttoned blue/black/white checkered flannel shirt, acid-wash skinny jeans and her black combat boots, cuts in from her place beside Inuyasha on the right side of the doorway.
"Alright, let's go over the plan once more: During recess, give Hitomi the message that you have an important confession to make after school. Meet her in the playground then, and just blurt out your feelings with no hesitation. Nice and simple!"
"You mean I gotta wear this outfit 'til after school?"
Freeman chides in a playfully-offended tone,
"Auh, how rude, and after all that trouble I went through...! (Wry smile) But seriously, would you have preferred a tux?"
"Gah! N-No!"
"I didn't think so, now off ya go."
He gently pushes Souta forward, while Besa and Coraline cheer encouragingly,
"Go for it, Souta!" "Banzai, little bro!"
Inuyasha tugs the tap of a party toy, making confetti pop out while his face was set in a 'You people have lost me' expression...
"(Light nudge) Come on, Inuyasha, you and the guys join in! Banzai!"
"O-Oh, Banzai!"
All four teens kept the cheer going for a couple more minutes, until the youngest Higurashi family member was out of sight from the top of the shrine steps...
"...We can stop now, right?"
"Yep, we're done."
The three teenage boys exhale with relief, while the redhead shakes her head at them with a smile:
"You guys can't seriously be out of shape from one little cheer...Anyway, I'm heading to the courtyard to do some combat practice. Join me if you think you're able to..."
Small Time Skip
It's now approaching noon, and we turn attention to the back of the Higurashi residence, as the four teens worked on perfecting their skills in hand-to-hand combat...
(Punch, punch, punc-KICK)
"Gyah!"
Currently, it was Inuyasha versus Freeman, the latter being thrown back to the ground by a particularly strong left leg hook by the former, causing Coraline and Besa to wince from their spot by the sliding glass door. As the teen moved to get up, the dog demon jeers with a chuckle,
"Come on, is that the best you got? Give a little more muscle, why don'tcha!"
"(Pant, pant) I'm tryin', man!"
"Well, try harder! Remember which era you'll be headin' back to!"
The redhead shakes her head with a soft sigh at how rough but well-meaning her boyfriend was being:
"As much as I'd like to disagree with the drill sergeant tactics he's using, I know he's being tough for a purpose..."
Besa nods:
"Yeah. He's just trying to help prepare us for any possible one-on-one fights with demons we could be forced to do when we head back to Edo and continue our journey."
"...Do you think we'll find a new lead in regards to honing in on 'that bastard'?"
"Dunno. All depends on where the Northeastern roads take us..."
"Hm..."
After about ten more minutes, Freeman comes jogging over to the other two modern teens to tag out.
"Hah, hah, hah, are any of ya, willin' to go in now? I can't swing another punch...!"
Coraline laughs a little before replying,
"Sure, bro. I'll switch."
She and he slide-five before shifting their places so the redhead was standing to walk to the middle of the courtyard, while the coarse-haired teen plopped onto his behind with his head ducking between his knees in exhaustion.
"Yeeeeesh...I'd almost prefer Master Yoshi's strict drilling."
Besa just pats his brother's back with a mildly concerned smile, before turning his focus on the new fight about to ensue, the shift of his head making his cornrow-styled black locks bounce a bit.
Let's see if Cora can last longer than Freeman against Inuyasha...
Said girl and dog demon move to stand a couple feet from eachother, readying themselves for battle:
"My turn again! This time, I'm gonna flip you for sure!"
"Ha, in your dreams, maybe! Now gimme all that you got!"
"Count on it!"
Coraline makes the first move, lunging forward with a left hook of her fist:
"Haaa-aah!"
(Swing)
But Inuyasha sidesteps away in time, before trying out his own right fist:
"Dodge, this!"
(Swing, leap)
"Uh!"
Using her Aura sensory, Coraline jumps up into the air and backflips over Inuyasha, dodging his fist, before trying to land a shooting star kick at his back.
"Yaaaah!"
(Thwack)
"Ugh!"
She succeeds, but the dog demon's endurance holds out and only stumbles forward before regaining his balance as the redhead lands smoothly on her feet.
"Hah...How's that for givin' it your all?"
"(Smirk) Not bad. You're gettin' faster, I'll give you that...Still..."
(Dash, whack)
"Waaah!"
"Your reaction time's yet to climb to meet my levels!"
Coraline's thrown backwards to the ground by a hit from Inuyasha's open palm, the sound causing the twins to wince.
"Oooh..."
"That must've hurt a little..."
Thankfully, the redhead was fine, if having a bit of the wind knocked out of her, and props up on her elbows with a breathy laugh.
"Guess I deserved that for getting a little cocky..."
She then pushes herself to jump back on her feet, a determined smile on her features:
"But I'm far from tagging out: Let's keep going!"
"Keh, that's the right attitude. Here we go!"
(Lunge) (Dash)
"Haaaah!" "Rrraaaaahhh!"
Small Time Skip, Coraline's POV
It's now about three-thirty in the afternoon, and my bros, Inuyasha and I are sitting around the living room table snacking on some homemade ginger cookies and tea after some vigorous combat training while waiting for Souta to come home and regale the results of the plan...
"Man, what a crazy workout. I think I must've pulled a hamstring on that last punch...You really know how to train hard, Inuyasha."
He shrugs at Freeman while grabbing another cookie and stating matter-of-factually,
"Can't get better at kicking and punching without a little muscle pain..."
I then felt his stare as I rubbed my left shoulder:
"...What?"
"Somethin' wrong?"
"Nah, my own muscles are just a little stiff. Probably just an aftereffect from that cold: I didn't really move as much as I wanted to, so my joints kind-a seized up a bit."
"Hm...C'mere a sec."
"Uh? Alright..."
I scoot over closer to my boyfriend, and he turns my body so my back was facing him while I sat near his legs, before one of his hands starts massaging my stiff shoulder.
"Oh! Oh...aaahhh..."
"Keh, better?"
I hum in satisfaction while shutting my eyes in bliss,
"Much better. Thank you..."
"No prob."
I then hear Besa ask aloud,
"Wonder what's keeping Souta? It's getting close to fifteen to four..."
Freeman replies,
"Well, it's either he got rejected and is taking his sweet time to collect his thoughts, or Hitomi did return his feelings and he just froze from shock."
I come out of la-la land and pipe in,
"All depends on whether the force of Love wants to grant him a favour or not."
Inuyasha's hand leaves my left shoulder and tugs me back to his chest before grabbing his cup of tea to sip and voice his thoughts.
"I bet there was a little flaw in your guy's plan..."
I look at him with a pointed smirk for the tug-back while Freeman argued,
"Can't be. It was fool-proof!"
(Ka-chank)
"I'm home..."
We all shared a look on the tone of voice Souta used to greet the house, and Besa mutters,
"Ooo, that doesn't sound good."
Moving off of my boyfriend, I stand up and rush to meet with my kid brother to find out what happened:
"Souta? Gh!"
I flinched when I saw his downcast expression...
"What the heck happened, little bro?"
He doesn't answer, and I think to myself with a worried hum,
Oh dear. I've seen that mood before: Hitomi must've felt differently...Or, did he even get the words out?
Either way, looks like our plan backfired.
Souta starts to slowly pad along down the hall, and I follow after him while trying to cheer him up:
"Oh, Souta, don't be sad. Maybe you're just timing it too early in terms of discovering girls..."
"Kuh, cheer up, gloomy boy. There's lots and lots of other women out there."
I would've agreed with Inuyasha's statement, but something told me that Hitomi was a special case, so I looked at him with a mildly stern expression.
"I don't think that's something Souta needs to hear right now, Inuyasha..."
"Why? What's the problem?"
Before I could explain, Souta mutters sadly,
"It's not that..."
"Hm?" "Huh?"
"She, didn't really turn me down..."
Freeman and Besa pop their heads out from the sides of the living room entrance to out in the hallway and ask,
"Then what happened?"
"Was she not in school or something?"
"No...I, couldn't tell her."
I ask my younger brother in surprise,
"Seriously? Not even a hint?" He explains,
"I called Hitomi out after school just like you guys told me to...but then..."
Long story short, his message got caught in his throat thanks to a bundle of nerves, and while Hitomi didn't turn him away harshly, she basically said that she prefers boys who are confident in what they're talking about...
Souta's now seated at the table in the living room, and bangs his forehead on the hardwood while wailing,
"I'm never falling in love again!"
I sigh with an exasperated smile and think to myself,
If this track record keeps up, we might have another, more dramatic Hōjō in the next few years...
Inuyasha scolds Souta for his behaviour:
"Idiot! You haven't even told her yet, so quick cryin' like a baby!"
The latter shoots his head up with a frustrated glare and shouts back,
"What's the point in telling her now?! I'm a weakling and she's too good for me; I can't even say what I want to!"
"What're you talkin' about?! If that's how you feel, then change yourself!"
...We all look at Inuyasha confusingly, until he adds with a determined smile,
"Don't worry, kid: I'll toughen you up and make a man outta ya!"
Once he said that, I felt a smile creep up on my lips:
"Inuyasha..."
My brothers smile too and whisper to one another,
"I just hope for Souta's sake, he doesn't get overworked like we did a few hours ago..."
"You said it..."
We all move into the courtyard, and watch as Inuyasha does a, demonstration of strength, by slicing a tree into two with his claws.
"Iron Reaver, Soul Stealer!"
(Slash, crash)
I widen my eyes in disbelief, while Freeman sighs and mutters,
"I'll go get the axe from the storehouse," before walking off...Inuyasha turns back to Souta:
"Okay, now you try it!"
"I dunno..." He urges,
"Try it," and Souta, while not as confident, gives it a shot:
"U-Uh, (swings his arm) Iron Reaver, Soul Stealer."
"(Smile) Excellent! That's not bad at all for your first time."
I tilt my head in confusion, while Besa mutters,
"Uh, not quite following this, but then again, he wasn't really following our plan either..."
"Okay! Give it another shot!"
Souta nods halfheartedly, and does the same gesture as Inuyasha does when he uses his attack:
"Iron Reaver, Soul Stealer."
As he kept that going, Besa and I jog to my boyfriend's side to get some answers to what the heck his plan was.
"Uh, Inuyasha?"
"What?"
My brother and I ask in a whisper,
"Where exactly are you going with this plan?"
"Yeah, we're kind-a lost..." He explains,
"This is all a matter of spirit: I'm just tryin' to get his adrenaline pumping and boost his confidence."
Besa and I light up in realization:
"Ooooh..."
"That makes sense." Inuyasha adds with a slightly smug air,
"He's in good hands."
Souta then pauses in his actions and asks us,
"Is somethin' the matter?"
Snapping out of our conversation, we turn to him and I reply,
"Nah. Just chattin'...Say, Souta, I might be seeing too soon, but it looks like you've put on some strength from the training."
"Huh, yeah?"
Catching onto my encouragement, Inuyasha and Besa add,
"Y-Yeah, she's right, I think you have gotten a bit stronger!"
"A new man's coming out of ya."
My kid brother blushes a bit and scratches the side of his face while asking,
"You really think so?"
I smile and nod:
"Totally! Your inner, confident self is starting to peek out." The guys add,
"You see, Souta..."
"All about hard work..."
Then all three of us clench our fists and call determinedly,
"Do your best!"
He looks at us apprehensively, but tries to form a smile back all the same...
No POV
After another half hour, everyone of the house was standing in front of the front door to send their positive energy to Souta in his second attempt to tell his crush how he feels. The four teens, Akari and Grandfather stood in a line and waved their arms up and down enthusiastically while calling the same cheer from a couple hours ago.
"Banzai! Banzai! Banzai! Banzai!..." Souta stares at them all and mumbles to himself,
"Now Grandpa and Mom are in on it..."
Coraline pauses and gently turns the boy in the other direction:
"Don't focus on us, Souta: Focus on your goal. Now off ya go to Hitomi's!"
He starts walking away, but was still a bit skeptical of the situation:
"I dunno, something tells me this is a trick..."
Once Souta was gone, everyone heads back inside the house, with the adults heading for the living room, and the teens going up to sit in Coraline's bedroom. While she was scribbling down some notes and reading a few passages in the old book she borrowed from the library, Inuyasha sat on the floor by her left while hitting his shoulders.
"Aw, man. This stuff is way harder than slayin' demons!"
"Which is ironic considering you were in a similar situation not too long ago."
The dog demon looks up at Besa with a mild glare, who was sitting beside Freeman on the side of Coraline's bed, and argues,
"That was different: We're on the road to being adults and Souta's still just a kid...(Blushes) And, I guess if I can be honest, it's not like we weren't going to end up together. We kind-a...already said it without knowin' it at the time..."
"Oh?"
Inuyasha nods meekly, and Coraline pauses in her work to smile down at him with a small blush of her own:
"Yeah, I guess looking back...it was just meant to be before the thought even crossed our minds."
Shaking her head lightly, she gets back to current events:
"But getting back to Souta, let's all cross our fingers that this plan works."
Inuyasha hmphs and comments,
"Your kid brother is sure hard to persuade."
Freeman jokes,
"He's like a runaway groom that can't commit."
Coraline smiles exasperatedly and replies,
"Yeah. It's funny: He wasn't always this timid of heart when we were younger, but then again, I've only really known him since I arrived here at this shrine almost four years ago now..."
"Still, mullin' over the problem's not gonna solve anything at all."
She nods in agreement with Inuyasha:
"We certainly know from experience that the longer you delay a confession, the harder it becomes to convey."
"Yeah, definitely. (Half-smirk) Makes me kind-a glad that you were the braver one during that day."
"(Giggle) Thanks."
...A while later, as the sun started casting a light orange glow in the sky for the coming sunset:
(Ka-chank)
"Hm?"
A familiar young boy returns to the house, looking more downcast than before:
"Souta!"
"Oh no, don't tell us...!"
He's now seated on his knees across from Inuyasha after explaining what happened, and the latter was not impressed.
"So, you came back with your tail between your legs?"
"I can't do this. I thought about it, and I realized that a little training isn't gonna make me strong. I can't change my personality that easily!"
The twins facepalm with quiet groans while Coraline smiles sadly:
Shoot. Strike two...Oh Souta, you weren't always this bashful. Where did that excited boy I used to play with go?
She jumps back to reality as Inuyasha lets out a frustrated yell and stands up:
"Aaaargh, damn it all! Would you cut this out?!"
Souta flinches as the dog demon adds,
"Stop dawdlin' like this and go tell the girl how you feel already!"
"Yeah, it's easier said than done, 'specially since you've had better luck than me..."
"Quit making excuses! C'mere!"
Inuyasha suddenly yanks up the boy by his collar and starts dragging him out the room, despite the protests.
"Stooop!"
Coraline and the twins mutter,
"Hoh boy..."
"Now the kid's done it."
"We better go make sure Inuyasha doesn't do anything too crazy..."
They follow the other two downstairs to the front door, as Inuyasha drops Souta on the front steps:
"Oof!"
"Alright, off ya go, and don't come back until you've told her, you got that?"
"(Eyes bulge) You're not serious!"
"If you do come back before you've told her, then you're not gettin' back inside!"
"But this is my house...!"
"Come on! Have a little backbone; make up your mind! That's all it takes!"
"I know, b-but..."
"But nothin'! Don't be so wishy-washy, Souta! Didn't you tell me the other night that you loved this girl?!"
That seemed to finally strike a chord in the young boy...He stares at Inuyasha as he finalizes,
"Listen: Are you a man, or aren't you? Have courage and just go for it!"
...Souta nods, a new form of determination on his face, making the dog demon smile. Just before he leaves, the boy calls back over his shoulder,
"Cross your fingers?" Inuyasha nods,
"Sure," and the other three chide,
"Good luck, Souta."
"You got it this time, dude." "Third one's always the charm."
With that, the boy rushes off to meet his mark...Just as he vanishes down the shrine steps, Coraline turns to Inuyasha and says,
"I'm goin' to witness. You comin' too?"
"Huh?"
"As his older sister, I want to be there to watch out for him. Might've missed the first two times, but still..."
"What, you mean like spy?"
"Mm, more like monitoring, but whatever. (Grabs his hand) Let's go!"
The redhead starts pulling the silver-haired male along to follow Souta, much to his minor protest:
"Guh, h-hey, Coraline!"
Watching them leave, Besa sideglances Freeman and asks,
"You wanna tag with 'em?"
"Nah, I'm good. They're more likely gonna get into a make-out session down at the playground, and I for one, do not wanna see that."
They head back inside the house as the former gawks,
"Auh, bro!"
"What? It's a plausible scenario!"
Small Time Skip
It's now evening, about six-ten to be more precise, and as the sunset burned its many shades of light and deep orange, we turn our eyes to the middle of the local elementary school playground, with Souta and Hitomi facing one another by an intricate monkey bar structure, while Coraline and Inuyasha peer at the scene from behind some bushes a distance away...It would be the little brunette who broke the silence:
"What's the matter? You seem sort-of different today, Souta."
"Hitomi..."
"Uh?"
"I have something important to say..."
"What is it?"
The two teens watch with attentive expressions, subconsciously grabbing eachother's hand to hold in anticipation for the words Souta needed to say...The last sentence from Inuyasha echoes in the young boy's head:
(Flash)
"Listen: Are you a man, or aren't you? Have courage and just go for it!"
(Flash)
Inuyasha...
"Hitomi...I'm not strong, and I'm not very reliable and probably not very good at saying how I feel, but...I...I really, really like you, Hitomi!"
Her face flushes over as lightly as Souta's did:
"...Souta..."
"...Would you be, my, girlfriend?"
A short silence follows...before Hitomi smiles and answers,
"'Kay!"
"(Gasps with a smile) You will?!"
Back in the bushes, Coraline and Inuyasha smile proudly...before they become taken aback when they watch the young boy and girl step up and hug one another endearingly!
"O-Oh wow, I guess they must be, m-more mature in mind than in age..."
"G-Gotta give him credit..."
...They focus away from the cute scene and to eachother, their faces each glowing a little from redness, before Coraline smiles and says,
"But then again, we know that age is too weird to fully understand...especially when you dive headfirst into Love."
"(Smirk) Keh, yeah, no kidding..."
"...Inuyasha..."
"...Coraline..."
They felt no need to use anymore words, and opt for a more physical expression of their own love, leaning forward to one another and locking lips with the other in the evening glow...
Time Skip
Come the next day, our four teens would be inside the house of the Bone Eater's Well, doing a last check-over to make sure they had everything before diving down back to Edo, with Souta seeing them off.
Coraline, wearing her hair tied back in a braid, a sky blue, form-fit t-shirt, green khaki jeans and her combat boots, her sword over her shoulder behind her satchel and her combat knife strapped to her thigh, counts the giant cloth bags of supplies she packed with the items she and her brothers bought.
"One, two, three, and four...Yep, looks like it's all here. (Looks up) You guys got your weapons too?"
Freeman, who was wearing a green tank-top, blue jeans with minor ripping at the bottoms and his high-tops, his satchel saddled on while his long hammer was slung over his shoulder, salutes with a smile.
"Check!"
Besa, who chose an outfit of a dark red t-shirt, black jeans and his hightops, he also carrying his satchel on his back at the ready while his sickles were strapped in their holsters on his hips, follows his brother with an,
"All good to go!"
Inuyasha nods at all three, glancing at the faint glow from Lumos as he slipped into the front pocket of Coraline's satchel, before saying,
"Well, I guess it's time."
"Right."
The teens turn to meet Souta's eyes with smiles as Inuyasha tells him,
"See you later, Souta!"
"'Kay. Good luck over there."
"Bye for now, little bro."
"See you next!"
"Yeah, what he said, and congrats with Hitomi!"
The dog demon and the twins reach down to grab two and one bag each respectively, just as Souta adds,
"Hey, Inuyasha?"
"Yeah?"
"(Smile) Thank you."
"Sure."
Inuyasha then turns to the well and says to the others,
"Let's go, Coraline, guys!"
"Okay!"
"Down the rabbit hole..."
"...and back to Edo!"
And they all jump in two at a time, disappearing into the time-space glow...