A big thank-you to impracticaldemon for her help with this chapter and brainstorming. Anyway, here's chapter twelve. Enjoy!
Quotes:
"No cat out of its first fur was ever deceived by appearances, unlike human beings, who seem to enjoy it."
–Peter S. Beagle, The Last Unicorn
"Sometimes you lose a battle. But mischief always wins the war."
–John Green, Looking for Alaska
Thursday morning at 11:00 a.m. sharp, Kagome rapped her knuckles against the door to the Bakeneko Cat Sanctuary. She heard the snick of a lock, and then the door opened, revealing a frazzled-looking Momo, her eyes slightly glazed and her headband askew—though her cat ears were still hidden, Kagome noted. Upon seeing Kagome, Momo let out a huge sigh, shoulders drooping and visible relief showing on her face.
"Oh, thank goodness it's you," she said, ushering Kagome in and relocking the door behind her.
Inside, Kagome heard loud, high-pitched mewls, ones she hadn't heard the day before. She cocked her head. "Kittens?"
"Uh-huh." Momo massaged the bridge of her nose, and then waved at Kagome. "Come with me and we'll explain."
She led Kagome through the door behind the reception desk. It opened to a long hallway and more doorways, and Kagome followed her into one of the doors on the right.
Inside were a couple of chairs, a metal exam table, a few empty cages, and a sink counter with cabinets underneath. On the floor, next to half of a dog crate with towels and blankets inside, sat Miki, three wobbly blue-eyed kittens in her lap.
When the darker-haired girl glanced up, she seemed just as weary as her sister, despite it not even being noon yet.
"Sit down," Miki said, her tone brooking no argument. Kagome sat, and Miki handed her some towels that felt as if they'd just come out of the dryer. Then she handed her two of the mewling kittens, an orange tabby bobtail and a tortoiseshell with a stubby tail, though not as short as the tabby. Miki held the third, what appeared to be a seal point bobtail, and began bottle-feeding it. As she did so, Momo began to explain.
"When we, um, got here first thing this morning, there was a cardboard box waiting for us, and these babies were in it. No information, no mother, just, um, them." She ran a hand through her hair and straightened her headband.
"Could've been worse, nee-san. And it probably won't be the last time some prick dumps something on our doorstep," Miki said, frowning.
"Miki! Language!" Momo scolded. Her sister merely rolled her eyes.
Kagome laughed. "It's fine. Really. So how old are they? Will they…" she trailed off, not sure how to ask.
"Live?" Miki finished bluntly. Kagome nodded. "According to the vet, they're actually quite healthy; they're just a tad too young to be without a mother. His theory is that they're from some asshat breeder who didn't want to keep them since they're flawed. Hard to say if his theory's right since they don't look like purebreds. At least they're here and not in a dumpster somewhere," Miki said, jaw clenching.
Kagome jolted, shocked. "People do that?" Both women nodded, eyes dark. "That's horrible! And how are they flawed? They look perfect to me," she said, running her fingers gently over the fussy kittens in her lap.
"Um, well, you see, her tail is too long for a bobtail"—Momo stroked the tortoiseshell—"and the vet said this guy has an underbite, so they wouldn't want to breed him because of that." She pointed to the orange tabby.
"And this little girl's colorpoint on her face is flawed, see?" Miki turned the kitten so Kagome could see clearly, and Kagome stifled a gasp.
Despite having a solid brown bobtail instead of two full tails with a couple stripes, the tiny kitten bore a strong resemblance to Kirara. She was mostly cream, with seal points on her ears, feet, and tail, but where she should've had a brown mask per colorpoint standards, she only had a splotch of brown above her nose and in between her eyes, much like Kirara's.
"I think she's beautiful," Kagome breathed, and Momo and Miki exchanged confused looks. Then they smiled, even Miki.
"Damn right she is. Here, she's done eating, so take her and give me one of the others."
Kagome took her from Miki and handed her the tortoiseshell, who protested loudly.
Momo giggled. "She's a sassy one, that tortie. Um, anyway, before we talk about your schedule and what you'll usually be doing, we need to show you how to care for these guys, since for about a week, maybe less, we'll need to bottle-feed them as we wean them and transition them to cat food. Luckily they're just old enough to use a, um, litter box."
Together, Momo and Miki explained how to feed them and how often, to document when and how much they ate as well as their weight once a day, to warm the hot water bottle and towels, and other details she needed to be aware of for assisting in hand-rearing the orphans.
When they were finished, Kagome cleared her throat. "So…this might sound silly…but do they have names yet?"
Momo shook her head. "We hadn't really had time. It was, um, kind of frantic, finding them, getting the vet here to examine them, on top of normal morning routine stuff. Do…do you want to help us name them?" she asked softly.
Without hesitating, Kagome said, "The seal point girl. Can we call her Kirara?"
Miki shrugged. "Fine by me. How 'bout Tora for the boy?"
Momo raised an eyebrow. "You know Dad's not going to like you naming a kitten after him." Miki snickered, and her sister just sighed in resignation. "Fine… And what about Hime for the tortie?"
Miki narrowed her eyes at her sister. "You got something to say to me, sis?"
Saying nothing, Momo simply gave her a sunny smile and then turned to Kagome, who was biting her lip to keep from laughing. With the tortie's coat's similarity to Miki's hair color, I'd say Momo is definitely making a comment about her extremely non-princess-like sister.
"So, um, why Kirara?"
"Well…she reminds me of a cat I once knew." A fire cat yokai…but I'll leave that part out for now.
"Oh, that's sweet. All right, now that they're taken care of, let's talk schedules and show you what you'll be doing."
By the time the sisters had shown Kagome the basics and given her a key and alarm code, it was time for her to head toward campus. As she left the cat sanctuary, she couldn't shake the feeling of someone watching her. Glancing around, she saw no one, just the stray cats at the cemetery. Maybe just I'm just nervous about coffee with Rikuo? Or maybe it's just me sensing the cats?
She tried taking a quick peek using her reiki, but quit after only a moment when she reluctantly acknowledged that there were more than a few—okay, a lot—of youki energies in Ukiyoe Town, and she was decidedly rusty on focusing on a single energy signature.
Speaking of which… Just the day before she'd been wishing she had a yokai friend to use for practice. Perhaps I can make use of two cat yokai I'll be in close proximity to. She grinned. Odds were they might notice what she was doing, and while she wasn't sure if she was ready to broach that subject with Miki and Momo quite yet, the benefits outweighed the risks. And clearly I'm not a dangerous miko or I wouldn't be working with yokai… Surely I could convince them… Right?
Preoccupied with plans for sharpening her skills, Kagome's nervousness over her impending coffee date ebbed away as she made her way to campus.
As the clock ticked closer and closer to 2:45 p.m., the anxiety began to return in full force.
Why is he making you so antsy? So you swore off dating a couple years back because of the jewel's curse—one date does not equal a long-term commitment! Kagome blew out a breath. Was it because she felt some kind of connection to Rikuo that she couldn't explain? She sighed again.
Kagome hadn't even noticed she'd been clicking her pen incessantly until a classmate turned around and hissed at her to stop. She was fairly certain she'd missed the last half hour of whatever her professor was discussing, not that she was overly fond of math anyway—she was only taking this class to fulfill her last requirement for graduation—but she had had every intention of paying attention since there was a test on Tuesday.
No use crying over ignored algebra. She'd just use the review notes the professor posted online and spend extra time studying. It's not like I pay that much attention on normal class days…
Once class let out, she calmed herself as she walked toward the coffee shop. She didn't spot Rikuo immediately, so she sat on a bench a few feet away.
As she waited, she tried to think of things that would help her in remaining non-antsy. Grocery lists…laundry… Neither of those are particularly relaxing… Ooo, kittens. Kagome thought fondly of the orphaned litter she'd met that morning. I wonder if they'd let me adopt that little seal point girl…the one I named Kirara… Hmm…Mama certainly would be thrilled. But—
"A yen for your thoughts?" a voice behind her asked.
Kagome jumped, having been so distracted by her musings that she hadn't heard anyone approach.
"Sorry, did I scare you?" Rikuo managed to keep a straight face at her startling, but his brown eyes sparkled with mischief.
"Maybe you shouldn't sneak up on people!" Although she frowned, her tone belied any real irritation.
He smirked at her in response. Then, he held out a hand to her. "Shall we?"
Kagome took his hand, and he helped her to her feet—not that she really needed any help getting up off the bench, but the gesture was appreciated. The contact was brief, but she noticed his hand was pleasantly warm and slightly callused. If she were being honest, it somehow reminded her of Inuyasha's, minus the claws of course. And while his hair wasn't white nor nearly as long as Inuyasha's had been, something about the slightly messy, black-brown hair made her want to run her hands through it.
Why stop there? If the way that jacket and those pants fit are any indication, there's a seriously nice body under there too, the devil on her shoulder whispered. The angel on the other shoulder tapped her lips before shrugging and giving a thumbs-up.
Kagome gave herself a mental shake, and then, realizing she hadn't yet let go, once again momentarily lost in her own thoughts, she smiled and quickly released his hand. "Thanks."
Rikuo grinned. "Sure, any time."
That pesky colony of butterflies residing in her stomach took flight, whether from the physical contact or that smile of his that she found so appealing, who knew. Simmer down, Kagome. At least make an effort to appear to be a functional adult instead of a hormonal teen.
"Um…thanks for coming all the way to campus… Is the coffee shop okay with you?"
He nodded. "After you," he said, gesturing toward the café.
Since the weather was nice, they opted to take their drinks outside and sit at one of the wrought-iron tables on the terrace. Kagome had gotten her usual café mocha, and Rikuo got tea, which made her laugh. "Really, tea? Their coffee isn't that bad!"
"I will confess that I've actually never been here, aside from the other day, that is."
Kagome eyed him. "How have you not been here? Wait, I assumed you were a student too, since you were in the university library the other day."
Rikuo leaned back in his chair and spread his hands. "I was a student, but I wasn't usually here." She rolled her eyes at the non-answer, and he gave her a little half smile. "I took most of my classes for my business degree online. It was easier with my…job."
"Oh, makes sense. What do you do? If you don't mind my asking?"
He paused for a moment and said, "It's a family business." Rikuo didn't elaborate, so she didn't press him for details.
There was a lull in the conversation, and then he asked, "So are you from Tokyo originally?"
"Uh-huh, my family has a shrine across town, but I have an apartment just on the edge of campus. What about you? I assume if you took online classes that you didn't live on, or near, campus."
"You would assume correctly. I live at our clan's— I mean, our family's house in Ukiyoe Town," he answered, fiddling with his tea.
Clan? Odd word choice…
She considered asking, but before she could, Rikuo spoke, "Oh! Speaking of Ukiyoe Town, when do you start at the cat sanctuary?"
Thinking of the kittens from earlier in the day brought another smile to her face. "Well, I kind of had 'orientation' this morning, but officially tomorrow. Did you know they've got kittens?" she asked excitedly.
Rikuo chuckled. "Is that not normal for a cat sanctuary, or are you always this enthusiastic about kittens?"
"Hey, there is absolutely nothing wrong with being excited about kittens. But if you're going to be like that, I don't have to tell you anything," Kagome said fiercely, folding her arms atop the table and pinning him with her gaze. When Rikuo held his hands up in playful surrender, she explained about the orphaned litter, finishing by saying, "You should come see them!"
"I should." Rikuo twisted his mouth and gazed upward, but what he was contemplating, she had no clue. Abruptly he asked, "Do you like sweets?"
"Huh?" The swift change in topics threw her. "Oh, yes, why?"
"I know a place that has great dango." He gave her a lopsided grin. "Maybe your boss can bring some by one day you're working."
"I think my boss just wants to see those kittens, not that he needs an excuse to stop by." Kagome laughed. "But…if you wanted to come by, I'll be at work both tomorrow afternoon and all day Saturday, and I won't say no to sweets."
Something occurred to Kagome, something she'd been curious about for a little while now, and she asked, "Hey, random question. Obviously I was there for research, but if you've already graduated, what you were doing at the university library?"
Rikuo rubbed the back of his neck, looking faintly awkward. "Hmm…truth be told, that day I just needed to get out of the house, clear my head. Cabin fever, or something."
Kagome tilted her head, puzzled. "So you went to the campus library?"
"Weird, right? I couldn't begin to tell you how I wound up there. Serendipity, I guess." He shrugged.
She nodded slowly, thinking not only about just how fortuitous it had been for her since he'd prevented her from splatting, but also about how since that day, her life had had a bit of a fruit basket upset. And in the best of ways…
As she refocused on the man before her, she noticed him studying her, as though he wanted to ask her a question. "Yes?" she prompted.
"You're awfully secretive about the nature of your research. Presumably because it is something risqué, though I can't imagine the Keikain being helpful for anything like that."
He asked this so casually, as if he were inquiring about the weather, that for a moment, she wondered if he seriously believed she was researching something racy. That is, until she noticed his lips twitch in a hint of a smile.
"Oh, you…" she huffed.
"Me? I merely made an observation." He raised his eyebrows skeptically and then sipped his tea, the picture of feigned innocence.
Then something dawned on her. "Hey, wait a second! Granted I wasn't specific, but I already told you that it was about mythology and folklore when you ran into me and Keikain-san." She wasn't quite ready to delve into the yokai aspect of that research with him yet.
He laughed. "Indeed you did. Guess you're not as easy to fool as I thought."
She gave him a mock scowl. "Well, I'm so glad you thought so highly of me. You know, 'you're not as dumb as you look' isn't exactly an effective way to compliment someone…"
"Who said anything about looking dumb? I think you look perfect."
The remark made her stomach flip-flop and her heart rate spike, but she hid any visible nervousness by taking a swallow of her coffee.
He asked about her classes, and eventually, the two settled into a comfortable exchange, a blend of playful banter and serious dialogue, each actively engaged and genuinely curious about the other. Before long, the passage of time escaping them, the sun was sinking below the horizon and dusk was creeping up on them. In the light from the setting sun, Rikuo's brown eyes took on a reddish hue, and it reminded her of the odd double image she'd gotten when they'd first met.
Adding that to Natsumi's remarks the night before and the cat yokai running a business that his family managed had her mind's wheels turning. Could he… Is it possible…?
Kagome ran her gaze over his features, searching for any indication…for anything out of the ordinary. Then, she started to extend a tendril of her reiki—
"Hey."
Rikuo's voice jolted her, and she swallowed hard, feeling somewhat guilty.
"Do I have something on my face?" he asked, lips curving up on one side.
"Huh?"
"You were staring. Or"—he leaned forward, expression impish—"did you see something you liked?"
"What? You know, you're hardly the first attractive man I've seen, and I doubt you'll be the last!" The snippy reply slipped out before she had a chance to consider the implications—implications that were not lost on Rikuo.
"Ho? So you find me attractive?" His tone was smug and he was full-on smirking, but what caught Kagome's attention was the barely noticeable swath of pink across his cheeks.
Was he actually blushing? Sure, it could have been a trick of the light from the setting sun, but Kagome had a funny feeling that wasn't the case. Oh-ho! So Mr. Arrogant isn't as unaffected as he might pretend! Mentally she rubbed her hands together gleefully.
Kagome arched an eyebrow, and then shrugged as if indifferent. "And if I do?"
The shock that appeared for a split second was priceless. Then he coughed lightly and gave her a genuine smile, one without any smugness remaining.
"Eto… Then I'm a damn lucky man if a beautiful woman like you thinks so."
His blunt statement effectively pulled the rug out from under her metaphorical feet, yet for some reason, she sensed he was being completely honest, which amazed her even further.
She suddenly felt incredibly self-conscious and tried to will away the heat she felt creeping into her face.
Silence stretched between them for a moment, as if neither quite knew what to say next. Trying to fill the break in conversation with something, anything, Kagome said lamely, "Whoa, sunset already?"
He snorted. "There a reason this daily occurrence is a novelty to you?"
She placed her hands on her hips, and she wanted to glare at him, she really did, but instead, she started laughing. "Okay, fine, that was a rather inane comment."
"Far be it from me to critique a lady's commentary…however inane it might be."
Kagome crossed her arms. "Hmph. I see the way of it… You know, you could have just let it go instead of teasing me."
Rikuo gave her a look of mock incredulity. "Oi, oi…where's the fun in that?" Then, more seriously, he said, "All joking aside, would you like to have dinner some time? Perhaps this weekend, or Monday?"
The question caused a little zing of adrenaline and had her discreetly rubbing her palms against her thighs. "Hmm… This weekend I'm pretty busy with work and school stuff—I've got a paper due Monday and then a math test on Tuesday…" She twitched her nose, grimacing.
"Not a fan of math, huh? Well, I'm not half bad at math, so what if I help you study on Monday? Then we could go to dinner after." At Kagome's unconvinced look, he added teasingly, "Test or not, you've still got to eat, don't you?"
He makes a valid point, that nagging voice in the back of her head supplied helpfully. And studying with someone is far more pleasant… Especially if that someone looks as good as he does…
"Oh, all right," Kagome conceded, both to Rikuo and the obnoxious voice. "I'll be in Ukiyoe Town on Monday anyway for work—the sanctuary is closed, but the cats still need clean cages and fresh food and water. Plus the kittens will have to be fed."
Rikuo nodded, grinning. "Perfect! We can study there—it'll be quiet, and the cats won't mind the company, I'm sure. I'll let Momo and Miki know."
They said their good-byes and went their separate ways. As Kagome made the trip home, she thought about Rikuo. There was no denying that she enjoyed his company, and she looked forward to seeing him again, despite her intentions to avoid developing too many close relationships that would only end in inevitable heartache. However, at present, none of that was what preoccupied her. She'd been this close to using her reiki to check if perhaps he wasn't as human as he appeared, but he'd interrupted her. Conveniently.
Okay, now, let's not go making this into some crazy-assed conspiracy. It's just as plausible you hesitated for some reason. You want conspiracies, get back on the paranormal investigators website, she told herself sternly. That being said, she made a promise to herself. A promise she was determined to keep.
The next time she saw Nura Rikuo, she wouldn't hesitate.
Blushing? What the hell is wrong with you? Rikuo could have smacked himself in the head for acting like that, had he not been leaving campus and people likely would have stared. What are you, some awkward schoolboy with his first crush? Ugh…
Perhaps it had been her blatant admission that she found him attractive that had him reacting to her like that. He hadn't felt that off-kilter around a woman since junior high, before he and Tsurara had realized they were better suited as friends.
Who the hell knows. He sighed. Better to let it go. What I do know is she affects me in a way like no one else has before. He'd even forgotten to examine her youki like he'd planned, he'd been so focused on enjoying her company. All in all, it had been a wholly pleasant afternoon. That plus the prospect of seeing his blue-eyed miko again, perhaps as soon as Saturday, had him grinning to himself, his steps a little more jaunty than usual as he shifted into his yokai form—so that Itaku-sounding mental voice would quit pestering him about training—and made his way back to the clan house.
As Rikuo turned the last corner onto their street, night had completely fallen, and a spark of inspiration struck him with the realization that it was the night of the new moon. A nice dark night…
As luck would have it, Tsurara happened to be right by the front gate as he entered. "Yo, Tsurara!"
"Oh! Hi, Rikuo-sama," she said cheerfully. Then her expression grew surprisingly sly for the yuki onna. "So…how was your date?"
"Been spending time with Kejōrō, have you? Or was it perhaps Natsumi?" He barked a laugh and then cut her off as she opened her mouth to answer. "Hey, you busy tonight?"
She looked up at him questioningly. "No…why? Is something wrong, Rikuo-sama?"
Rikuo gave her a smile that bordered on feral. "No moon tonight. Wanna go have some fun, spook some people, scare up a bit of Fear?"
Tsurara's eyes grew wide as saucers, and then she slowly returned his smile with a puckish one of her own. "Hai!"
"Oi, Rikuo. The hell's got you grinning like a fool?" The sound of his sworn brother's voice had him glancing to the side to see Zen and Shouei sitting on the engawa near the sakura tree, a bottle of sake between them and cups in their hands.
"Zen! Shouei! In the mood for a little mischief?" Rikuo asked, and his friends returned his grin.
Before long, news of Rikuo's good spirits and his intentions for the moonless night spread like wildfire through the clan. It had been a while since Rikuo had been in the mood for a few innocuous pranks, so quite a few of the Nuragumi yokai elected to accompany them, an impromptu Hyakki Yakō forming for a night of frivolity.
Rikuo felt an odd blend of guilt and contentedness at the occurrence. He'd been angsty, as his grandfather had called it, for far too long, and his Night Parade deserved better. On the other hand, their wicked glee over this silly outing made him both happy as well as proud, taking satisfaction in a clan that wielded so much Fear, yet prioritized not hurting humans.
Oh yes, it's going to be a nice dark night indeed.
Author's notes:
1. The Kirara-esque looking kitten is just a kitten, nothing more. No, seriously.
2. Regarding Rikuo pulling innocent pranks—my thoughts are that he'd not only allow it but also indulge in it himself from time to time, as long as no humans were actually harmed. He is a yokai, part human or not, and some yokai in his clan believe yokai exist to scare humans. Besides, as long as no one gets hurt, where's the harm, right?
3. As always, thank you so much to everyone who reads, reviews, follows, etc. Y'all are all SO appreciated! And both welcome and thanks to the new readers as well!