JennyTheWhiteWolf: Ok I am alive and I have a new chapter out. I have chapter 12 mostly done so that will be out soon. For anyone out there still reading, I thank you and hope that you enjoy.
Time and routine were something that helped with a lot of adjustments for everyone. A month had taken place and Miroku was on the mend. So much so that he was going stir crazy about how much bed rest he truly needed. He was thankful for the time he was allowed to meditate with Kagome in the early mornings. He helped her hone in on the energy within her and to commune with it and to allow it to flow through her. Also, he would sometimes pretend to meditate and instead be studying the contours of her face. Kagome was a flurry of action between finishing her work with Akira whenever she could and keeping up with both Shippo and Shiori's needs. Shiori was very responsive to the care given to her and was not as locked away from everyone. She was beginning to talk more and interact more with others and greatly enjoyed the games with Shippo and Souta. The three were practically inseparable. Souta was disappointed when it was decided that the spell removal would best be done before having to go to the past. He got over that quickly as he has seen how the other demons of the group initially reacted. It was Riza and Kagome's grandfather who tried to spend as much time as they could with Kagome and Souta while also getting to know all her friends. They felt better knowing just how loved they were while also knowing how hard the time will be to say goodbye. Inuyasha was one of the ones most irritated with the stay, but somehow Naomi made that easier as she saw it as her mission to help take his mind off of being restless and being an overall grouch at times. Sango and Akira had spent time getting to know one another to the point of feeling more like siblings. She had even joined Naomi in teasing Akira about Kouga when she could. There was a time when Kouga just got out of the shower and only had a towel around his waist. Akira ran smack dab into him after retrieving something from her room and she was so red and so flustered at the contact she immediately turned to go back into her room only to smack into the closed door. Both Naomi and Sango didn't let her off the hook for at least a week. Kouga in that time studied Akira and the place she lived and the environment in which she grew up in. He was also beginning to see what it was that was happening between the two of them. It was something pretty common with wolf demons, but still its always a surprise when it happens to you. Its knowing that the one you are meant to be with. The best he could think of is that movie that Akira likes with all the monsters. They called it a zing and honestly it pretty much summed it up in a childish sort of way. He had even called her his zing once to see her reaction and it was perfect. Sango and Naomi had choked on their drinks at the moment with Sango knowing how true of a statement that was. Akira was so red and flustered and he drank in the flustered look that only he has been able to bring out in her and had proceeded to place a kiss upon her cheek and felt the heat of her face. At nights the four of them would go out and practice their abilities in running and have contests of sorts, except for Sango who was made official referee.
It is now that Naomi had declared the latest race back home and took off before waiting for anyone else. As it turns out the gold in Naomi's hair represented lightning and she would flash from one spot to another. The speed is just as quick as lightning, but also just as unpredictable or at least right now it is. It seemed her lightning burst had a limit in terms of concentration. She had a very hard time pinpointing the exact spot in which she would pop up. That made it funny when she would run into things. As a side effect she began to be decent at evading things at the last second. Akira held onto Sango knowing she wouldn't be able to keep up nor did she want her left behind. The wind augmented her speed and being able to turn into the wind itself made obstacles a literal breeze. Yet, it was harder having Sango with her for an extended time as it drained her that much more. It just happened that when she needed a chance to catch her breath, she materialized within someone's yard and the dog there did not appreciate the intrusion. Kouga was only trailing behind because he could not stop laughing at Naomi popping into things and the dog that didn't want to quit despite Akira and Sango having left. In the end Kouga put on a burst of speed and made it there first. It was Naomi behind him with a last bit of lightning. Akira had let go of Sango when she arrived, who then stumbled up the steps to catch her bearings. That left Akira to be last and gave Naomi a halfhearted glare.
"That wasn't fair. I had to get Sango otherwise she would have been left behind." Sango smiled gratefully at Akira.
"Thanks for that by the way. I must say that is still the weirdest ways to travel so far, but also one of the most amazing. We can see everything and from every angle. It is a bit much, but spectacular. Also terrifying and nauseating as well." Akira chuckled at that and felt a bit bad when she noticed that Sango was a bit pale.
"Yeah, I just can't do it for so long before I tire. It is like a muscle that I haven't used in long time; I need to exercise it. Hopefully, I can get better." Naomi nodded.
"Yeah, I need to practice as well. Though where you could see everything, I had become more tunnel vision, but man the speed I can pull is crazy." Akira stumbled up the steps and would have fallen if Kouga had not caught her.
"Sorry, I guess I'm more winded than I thought." Akira brought her hand up to cover her eyes and laughed at her own unintended pun.
"Ok that was unintentional." Naomi groaned and shook her head at her sister knowing how much she loves puns such as that.
"Not entirely sure I believe ya sis." Akira thanked Kouga and made her way inside. Once they were all in Naomi turned to Akira.
"Well I'm gonna call it an early night ok. I'm beat. That race took more out of me than I had realized. Sango had quickly said something along the same lines along with how she needed to lay still so that the world could settle down in one place and proceeded to her own room. That left Kouga and Akira in the living room.
"Thankfully I don't have any paperwork to do and can actually lie down myself." Akira grabbed a blanket from the hallway closet and set herself up on the couch.
"I can take the couch and you can have your room back." Kouga made to go towards the couch, but Akira had already sat at the head of it.
"You are the guest so you get the bed. I would be a terrible hostess if I had you on the couch, besides the couch is not bad. It is a nice one after all. One of the few things we allowed ourselves to splurge on." Kouga looked confused as he sat next to her.
"Splurge?" Akira nodded and eyed the fact that he sat down and began to get comfortable.
"To spend extra money on something. Also, I know what you're doing, and I am not going to give up the couch just like that." Kouga smirked.
"Why do you say that? I sat down to be closer to you. We are having a conversation after all." Akira shook her head at him but was inwardly smiling.
"I say that because I am getting to know you and I can say its probably both. Still I am not giving in." Kouga's smile grew as he sat back more fully and spread his arms out to rest on the heads of the couch on either side of himself.
"You're right it is comfortable. The way I see it is you can go to your bed, or you can stay out here with me. Either way I see it as a win." Akira's smirk fell knowing he held the high ground, but she wasn't about to back down now, she was far too stubborn for that. Part of her loved how forward Kouga was and a part of her was startled with how attractive the prospect was and how she herself responded to him. Kouga was someone who knew what he wanted and followed his instincts where she had been nothing but focus on the future. Then again, she never met someone like Kouga who brought out these feelings in her so easily. She was torn in how to feel about that as well. So many changes all happening at once and she finds herself turning to Kouga more and more out of a desire to do so than necessity. Kouga watched the emotions cross her face. It was also then that he came to a realization; she is having a hard time controlling her emotions because now they are more wild and in a way more sensitive. That also made them more raw and closer to the surface. That made him more attentive and responsive to her as well. He could not help himself, but to watch her as he challenged her, waiting to see how she would respond. He felt his tail wag a bit at the anticipation, and she did not disappoint as she pulled up the blanket up and around herself more fully. Kouga going a step further reached out and pulled her flush up against him so that her head would rest on his chest. Her body tensed and her scent spiked along with a deep shade of red that he found quite attractive. She was about to pull away but more and more finding how much she didn't want to. The part of her that has been on edge wanting to jump at anything to loud and an overall feeling of being threatened since the change evaporated as she was by his side. Akira felt herself relax into him and rest her head more fully on his chest. A tenseness that she did not realize she was holding left and all she felt was drained and very tired. Before she knew it, she had fallen quite asleep. Kouga was quite surprised by the reaction and in turn reacted as well by continuing to hold her as he was simply teasing with the gesture and was going to pull away himself. He watched her trusting face and felt a surge of protectiveness. Here she was placing her full trust in him when she is in a state of high alert. That he can instill that kind of response spoke highly on a base level as well as his own response in kind.
"Looks like you're staying with me and if you let me, I'm going to keep you." Kouga swept back the bit of hair that had fallen over her face and rested a chaste kiss upon her brow. After he lay his own head upon hers and allowed his own eyes to close.
Akira looked around trying to figure out where she was and after a while of looking through the fog, she found Naomi standing as if she were waiting for something. When Akira stood next to her, she did not seem surprised.
"Akira is this the real you? Or dream you?" Akira was confused by that and how could she validate if it is the real her versus a dream anyway.
"As far as I know I am real. We just finished running home because of you and I think I fell asleep and here I am." Akira left out the part of where she fell asleep and watched as Naomi nodded.
"All I know is that since I got here, I have been following my inner demon and she left me here. By the way that took a lot to get used to. She says that we can't fully be connected until I learn my past. To remove the barrier that is separating us. So far it has just been a bunch of memories of the first orphanage. Back then it was difficult as they were extremely strict and they pushed us really hard, but none harder than they were on you. They did that because you kept protecting and trying to shelter me even if that got you in trouble. I remember they punished you a lot for that. Tried to teach you a lesson or some other nonsense." Akira held her head as she felt those memories come back to her. The memories were mostly painful and she hated that time there. It was not only the ones that ran it that were strict to the point of cruelty, but the other orphans who were out only for themselves. The only thing good from those times was each other and they held onto that because they only had one another.
The fog began to clear and what came into view was the second orphanage where the spell was placed on the necklaces to became human. They followed their younger selves around as they grew as a human would, and Naomi took note how Akira was always excluded until she had made a point of including her and even then, the others left shortly after. The caretakers seemed to favor Naomi and seemed to resent Akira. They believed that she was holding on to Naomi selfishly as many wanted to adopt Naomi separately and apart from Akira. The older Naomi for the first time heard how the parents rejected Akira openly and a lot of the time straight to Akira's face. The other children avoided her, and Naomi saw a side of Akira she did not know about and felt awful about not seeing it. Here her sister was constantly rejected and looked down upon, but would always hold a smile for her. The moment Naomi's back was turned Akira's inner turmoil would surface and she held that alone. The older Akira watched it all, feeling the weight of all those memories once again and seeing the look on the elder Naomi's face was something she did not want to face. She held her grief and pain away for a reason. She had to look out for Naomi and so could not burden her with her own insecurities. There was also the part of her that felt she did not deserve anyone else's help no matter who it was that provided it.
"Why did you not lean on me? Hell, why did you hide all of that from me? They had no right to treat you that way. Here I was having a great time making friends and you were alone. We're sisters and you should have told me. Maybe I could have helped." Akira smiled sadly at Naomi.
"I didn't want to burden you. Besides, I didn't tell you because I didn't want how they treated me to affect how you saw and interacted with them. You saw everyone in such a light and goodness that I could not rob that of you. You also helped by being the one good thing in my life. You were my light and I believed I was protecting you." Naomi crossed her arms not liking what Akira had to endure alone.
"We are supposed to protect one another." The scene changed to show a younger Naomi on a playground playing with a bunch of kids before a wealthy couple had come up to them and had asked to speak with Naomi. There were several groans, but they did as they were asked and walked off leaving Naomi to speak with them. They began asking her if she wanted to come and live with them while promising her all she could ever ask for and more. Naomi was so excited that she ran inside without even giving the two an answer. Her first thing was to go and tell her sister convinced the two were going together. The elder Naomi followed along with the elder Akira right behind her. When the younger Naomi stopped, they saw that she was listening in on a conversation on the other side of the door that was left open about a couple of inches. From where they were with their enhanced hearing, they could make out every word.
"You know just as well as I that she will be far better off with the Tanaka's. You can't be selfish by depriving her of a better life. You have no practical means to care for her as you can hardly care for yourself. Love is not enough in this world, and you should know that by now. You have waited for a time to leave with your sister, and I have nothing in which to keep this from happening, but to make you see reason. This family has high hopes that she will go with them and if you loved her at all you would let her go." The younger Naomi who was looking through the crack in the door saw how her sister hesitated and she could practically see the fight leave her and she couldn't stand the sight. She was going to let her go, and she was eating the words of that woman who kept reminding her that she had nothing and how hard life was going to be. She had enough and slammed the door open with rage and glared up at the headmistress.
"I may not be able to have the prettiest things in life, but I will have what matters most and none of you are going to take that away from me. If that family wants me so bad then they can adopt me, but only so long as they adopt Akira as well." The younger Akira looked to the younger Naomi in shock before looking away and at the floor. The scene faded leaving the older sisters behind.
"You know she was right. I could never give you half the things you wanted and everything we have has been a struggle. Maybe you should have gone with them." Naomi rounded on her sister with the same rage as her younger counterpart.
"I may not have had everything I wanted, but I have had everything that I needed. I know that woman had gotten to you, but you can't let her words bring you down. We have each other and that is enough for me." When the fog returned slowly drifting and swirling at their feet they saw their counterparts, their inner demons staring back at them. They both looked to be made entirely out of water but differed from the other. Akira's watery hair turned to a vapor at the ends and a cool fog seemed to drift from all over her body and to pull at her feet. The most noticeable were the pair of translucent wings with intricate swirling designs that sprouted from her back to trail behind her touching the ground. Naomi's differed in the fact that an electrical current flowed throughout her body and would spark along her flesh. Her water like hair trailed behind her ended with lightning pooling at the ends appearing as a bright light and with every movement it would spark. The other thing they both had in common was that they both had red sclera in the eyes. The pupil within Akira's was a sapphire blue, but Naomi's the molten gold. They didn't say anything only walking over to their other selves and merge with the one they belonged to. For the first time in a long time, they felt whole.
Kagome had woken up super early as she could not stay asleep for very long. Her thoughts were going a mile a minute. Before she knew it, she had begun to sneak out of the room trying not to disturb Shippo and Shiori. She made her way downstairs, and she found her mother fiddling with a bag she had not seen before. Her body was bent so she could not see her face but she could see her tail still out on display without the illusion. She now knew that she had to recast the spell since all the other items turned to dust after it was lifted. What she needed was the ingredients and items to do so. When she finally decided to enter the room her mother's hand stilled and she turned to her more fully.
"I have been waiting for this and expecting it, but I must say I am not entirely sure I am ready for it." Riza went to sit by the table and held her hand out to indicate to the chair beside her. Kagome could not help, but to stare at the claws upon that hand and how surreal the whole experience was for her but went to sit in the chair anyway. When she did her mother took a deep breath before addressing her.
"I must start by saying that the reason that my plans have been changed and the reason for not having time is that I was approached by the S.D.A." Kagome looked like she was about to ask a question, but her mother held up her hand to halt it.
"Let me explain." Kagome nodded and figured some of her questions would be answered in the explanation anyway.
"The S.D.A. are the ones to govern and police all the supernatural of this world. In your case you are different because your trips through time are apart of the natural flow of time or so I'm told. If it were to be interfered in anyway the ripples it would have on the present are unknown and dangerous. Who governs this I do not not know, but that they know how the next series of events that are supposed to play out. They have never told me the full scope of that scale, but they made it very clear that the next order of events must unfold with you, your brother, friends, and that includes your new ones in Akira and Naomi to go to the past and stay there. The well will then be destroyed in every sense of the word. It will no longer exist having no way back. The only way we will be able to see one another again will be the long way around." Kagome listened to her mother having a hard time believing it, but the sadness in her mothers eyes was real.
"How long have we got?" Riza stared sadly at her daughter.
"The end of the week." Kagome felt her stomach drop at the revelation. She was always torn between the past and the present, but this was taking that choice away from her entirely. Five hundred years without her mother and grandfather was going to be hard and even thinking of it caused her heart to constrict. She could only imagine the pain her mother must be going through knowing that when she next saw her children they will be changed. That she missed being apart from a good chunk of their lives. Riza was watching her daughter absorb the news and the emotion that swirled in her eyes.
"That is why I have been putting a bag together for the journey. The S.D.A. have also dropped off several bags for you and your friends to take when you leave. I don't understand the mechanics of time travel, but they said it would contain all that you all would need. As for how they know was not told to me and I have given up trying. I placed the bags in the well house." Kagome saw the tear that trailed down her mother's face and went and wiped it away.
"No matter how far away I am, you will always be my mother and I love you so much." Kagome wrapped her arms around her mother and basked in her embrace. They stayed like that for quite a while with neither one wanting to let go. Eventually they broke away from one another as activity in the house began to be heard. Kagome looked to see her grandfather and smiled at him with a hint of sadness still lingering. Not needing to be told he could tell that she now knew the truth of what is to happen. He walked over and hugged his granddaughter to himself. The exchange was not as long as her mother's but was just as heartfelt. He stood away and nodded before sitting at the table. Kagome proceeded to make tea and the three of them sat and talked a bit before everyone else made themselves known.
Akira woke from her from her trip down memory lane and felt the full weight of the experience grip her and bring her down. The feelings that surfaced were difficult to handle and that it was like trying to whether through an internal storm that raged within, and she was drowning in it. She held the closest thing to her in order to have a firmer grasp of reality and felt her arms encircle Kouga who had not let go of her since she had fallen asleep. With his head having been resting on hers he was startled by her sudden jolt and with how firmly she held him. The scent of her emotions was intense and raving, and he had to keep a tight grip on his own emotions not to respond to hers in the way his demon saw fit. He chose to do the only thing that he knew could work. He began to make a rumbling sound in his chest that males would do to calm their females. It worked as she seemed to calm and not hold him quite so desperately. Finally, she seemed to come to and look to Kouga as if just realizing he was there.
"Are you ok? What happened?" Akira was thinking of saying she was fine, but felt safe with him and finding herself wanting to tell him how she really felt. She wanted him to understand, and she was somewhat startled that she felt that way. She has never felt that way towards anyone.
"I remembered my childhood and I can say it wasn't the most pleasant. The memories are hard to face. I have memory of both orphanages. Seeing the second one again felt unnecessary as we had not forgotten it and now Naomi knows how it really was for me. I didn't want her to know. I hid my pain away to protect her, but most of all I didn't want to ask her for help. I suppose I did not want to admit to needing it and feeling less than deserving of it." Kouga listened with rapt attention and felt the tremor in her body as she admitted to how she felt. Hearing the last part, he narrowed his eyes and brought her chin up to look at him.
"You are more than deserving and if you are to let me, I will always be here to help you." Akira felt her eyes tear up at the declaration. It was so genuine she found herself placing her faith in him along with a piece of her heart. She nodded with his hand still holding her chin. Feeling satisfied he smiled and placed his forehead against hers. Despite still feeling so sullen, since the memories were still so fresh, she smiled up at him at the contact.
"That's better. You are even more beautiful when you smile." A blush crept upon Akira's face and found herself burying it in the fabric of Kouga's shirt. She may have been embarrassed, but she didn't want to let go just yet. She didn't want to release the lifeline that she had found in him.
"Not that I'm complaining, but I was sure you would get up after that." Akira shook her head into his chest, and he chuckled in response.
"Just a moment more." Kouga nodded, more than happy to oblige. Unknowing to them Naomi had been listening in on their conversation. She was worried about Akira when she woke up and was going to go check up on her. She felt and smelled the deep well of emotion that had been locked away for so long and felt her own heart try and reach out to her. That was when she saw the two of them from the crack in her door. Saw how she clung to him and how he in response held her and more importantly how he was able to soothe and calm her. She had never seen such a reaction from her sister nor felt the bond that was beginning to truly take place. All flirting aside there was something there and she was amazed by it. She was amazed and shocked that Akira could open up like that and be vulnerable to him. So, for once instead of interrupting the moment to tease her, she went back to bed and allowed them this moment uninterrupted.
Sango woke up and quickly got and dressed for the day. For a first time in a very long time, she found that she slept in. Part of her really enjoyed it and made her forget about all that lay in the past. Another part of her felt lazy. The more she lingered in this place that she doesn't belong, the more she is reminded of what she had left behind. Kohaku is back there, and she had only recently found Isamu and he has not only been left behind but has been back there alone. Now that Miroku was on the mend, so to say, she did not see the reason to stay here any longer. Sure, she loved the friendship that was found in both Naomi and Akira, but she knew they needed to go back. Part of her wondered if the feeling was similar to what Kagome felt being back her time and away from her family that was in this one. She put the thought behind her momentarily as she finished getting ready. She went to the living room to see Kouga sitting on the couch. A moment later Akira stepped out of her room in far more casual clothes than she has seen her wear so far. She wore a pair of blue jeans and a light grey shirt with a blue plaid button up shirt left open over that. The three worked mutually to put something together for breakfast. Naomi joined shortly after. It seemed that they were all of similar mind to try and make it over to the shrine right away. This time they did not race as there were far too many people up and about. They still made good time and saw that Kagome's grandfather was waiting for them. He ushered them into the living room where they saw Kagome and Riza who were waiting for them. She waited for them to get comfortable before she began to explain what needed to happen by then end of the week. Naomi and Akira did not know how to take to being told that they specifically needed to go back as well. They were both at a milestone in their life where they could make that choice but being told that they needed to was another matter.
"Everything you need for the trip is within bags that will be taken with you when you are ready. Once on the other side there is a letter addressed to each of you and I am told it will help in understanding what is going on." Naomi stared at Riza and back at Kagome waiting for one or the other to yell out surprise or an, I got ya. When neither of them made any such notion she stood and began to pace the room back and forth.
"You have got to be kidding right? Why do we have to go? Where are we to go and what the hell are we supposed to do there anyway?" Akira stood to try and calm her sister, but she brushed the attempts away and rounded on her instead. It seemed that she too could not control her emotions as Akira is struggling with the same.
"What about music? What about movies? What about plumbing? I can't live without plumbing." Akira thought about what she said and had to take a moment on that last one. She made an excellent point there.
"We will just have to install our own plumbing. We have a week. First we look at the supplies that was provided by the S.D.A. If there is anything that we can bring along that is not there then we can take the time to get that now. Is it ok that we look at what's there?" Akira directed the tail end toward Riza. She seemed prepared for the question and brought out a rather impressive list.
"This is the inventory of what is in the bags. Feel free to go over it. They said the essentials are covered including some special interest items. They also put down recommendations for what is not among the inventory, and it was up to you on how you want to spend your remaining finances." Akira examined the list, and her eyes went wide over the detail of what was on there, along with the expense over it all. They literally have everything that they needed and several things she had not even thought of but knew would need down the line. There were indeed several luxury items that tailored to them specifically that it was downright scary. Still, that meant preparations were well taken care of. There were even some custom weapons for Kagome, Naomi, and Akira. Akira was a bit excited to see those. She handed the list to Naomi who kept going over everything and by the time she finished processing everything she was excited to go out and see the shiny new things. She was held back from doing so as it would be harder to pack everything back up once it was out. Finally have that said Akira and Kagome went to do the last bit that Kagome needed to do and then it was up to Akira to finalize everything with the school board. Kouga was disappointed to see her go but distracted himself by going out for a walk around town. Souta wanted to see some friends and took Shippo with him. Miroku had asked Sango to lightly spar with him so that he could loosen up and be fit to go back. She only agreed to it if he were to rest if any activity or movement was too much. Riza went into the kitchen bringing with her Shiori and Kagome's grandfather. So when they left Inuyasha headed outside with his arms in his sleeves. Naomi had decided to follow him because she did not have much that she needed to do. It was nice being ahead and having finished already. It took a moment for Inuyasha to realize that Naomi was following him and rounded on her the moment he had.
"Why are ya following me for?" Naomi raised an eyebrow at the statement.
"Initially I just wanted to ask you a couple of questions, but now I may follow you because I'm bored, and you seem really interesting." Inuyasha's own brow rose when she called him interesting but shrugged and went to sit at the base of the goshinboku instead of within its branches as he normally would.
"Go ahead, ask away." Naomi nodded and sat indian style directly in front of him. She sat so close that their knees were nearly touching. Inuyasha felt uncomfortable with the proximity, but he wasn't about to admit it. Nor did he have much of a choice due to sitting against the tree without the option of backing up.
"At the moment I am full of questions. I have memories of the first orphanage where we learn to control our abilities, instincts, and all that fun stuff. What I don't know is where they all are or how any of this works. I suppose that it doesn't matter because we aren't going to need that knowledge, but I also get the feeling that maybe this was done on purpose so that when we do go back we don't mess with time stream or whatever. This whole time traveling thing is heavy and I suppose that I am rather jealous with how calm you seem to handle everything. I wanted your advice and maybe even a chance to talk this out. I'm really overwhelmed and the thought of having to do something instead of choosing it myself is rather frustrating." Inuyasha stared at her rather incredulously at the tail end of her rant.
"You want my advice?" Naomi looked at Inuyasha confused by his tone.
"Yes, is it so surprising? You are the one with the most knowledge when it comes to traveling back and forth other than Kagome. You also could tell me a little bit of what to I can expect on the other side. You have a lot to offer so why wouldn't I? Besides I like talking to you." Inuyasha felt awkward and tried to cough into his hand to alleviate the itch that suddenly overcame his throat.
"I suppose not many do. I have never been good with people. When its advice someone is after they ask the others long before asking me about it." Naomi smiled largely at him and chose to sit by his side instead of directly in front. When she made her move she did so with emphasis and ended with her hip touching his. He blushed largely and she bumped him with her shoulder when it looked like he was about to inch away. She laughed outright at his reaction.
"It's a good thing I am not people and just Naomi then. Now come on spill, tell me." Inuyasha still red began to tell her different things about the past. He spoke of demons and how they were in more abundance and how humans lived far differently than they did here. Before he knew it, he was simply listing of things that came to mind. He even went so far as to tell her of his rough childhood, something he doesn't like to do. He just found it easy to talk to her. Naomi sat patiently and drank in his words. It brought her comfort and did not feel as panicked or as pressured when she did.
"I'm sorry to hear that truly. Akira never got along with others very well either. She never really gets close to anyone, and I can see that you have that in common with her. I don't know why people tend to like me, but what I do know is that it makes me sad to see how so many can dismiss someone so amazing." Inuyasha smiled despite himself. He pushed the comment of indirectly being called amazing to the side and told himself she was talking about her sister and not him. He did not or could not acknowledge that about himself. Still he felt the need to let her know that her words meant something to him and muttered a small thanks under his breath. Naomi smiled broadly and took upon herself to lean into him and rest her head upon him. Inuyasha did not want to appear flustered even though he very much was, sat stock still with a blush upon his face. After a time he simply accepted the action as her being the kind and bubbly person that she was and they ended up sitting out there simply enjoying the others company when Akira and Kagome came out and headed past them. Akira said she had to go to the high school with Kagome's work to finalize everything. Kagome smiled knowingly seeing the two together and Inuyasha turned his head away as if denying that anything different or strange was going on.
Kagome walked out of the house with Akira and smiled when she saw Naomi nudge Inuyasha and the coloring to his face was adorable. Still, she was in a hurry to finally be done with everything. As they walked, she couldn't help, but to chuckle to herself.
"What's so funny?" Akira gave Kagome a sideways glance.
"Just at how uncomfortable Inuyasha is with being comfortable." Akira laughed at that.
"Yeah Naomi has a way of bringing that out in some. She has always been more of a people person. She can get anyone to open up and she has that warm bubbly personality that draws people in; kind of like you." Kagome chuckled. When the two neared the school, they both picked up the pace to get this over with.
Kouga did one of the things when not with Akira and that was to watch the people around him as he walked around. He wanted to get a better feel for the place in which Akira lived and he was surprised by the sheer volume of people. Still, he was able to make out the different group types. There were mothers with their children and groups of friends that were enjoying each other's company. He even saw several couples that walked hand in hand. He paid extra attention to those. Soon enough he became bored with it all. Akira had said it herself that she preferred nature to the city so he figured he had that going for him. He felt somewhat selfish by being glad that she and her sister had to go with them. Truthfully, he had not considered the idea of her staying behind to begin with and felt happy he wasn't going to lose her to something as dumb as time. Suddenly he could pick up her scent and he began to head in that direction. When he caught up to it he found her with Kagome walking back towards the shrine. Kagome was smiling and holding something out in front of her. Its been a while since he has seen her this happy and found him smiling for her. Kagome did a little spin and held that something to her chest. Akira had smiled and placed a hand on her shoulder saying something to her. That was when he walked over and called their names. He saw the surprise on Kagome's face and a smile on Akira's.
"I was wondering how long it was going to take for you to join us." Kouga smirked at that.
"How'd you figure that?" Akira was quick to answer and perhaps too quick.
"I used my nose. I caught your scent a bit ago." Akira knew after the words left her mouth what trap she fell into. Kagome just looked puzzled at the exchange.
"Memorized my scent huh? And to pick it out of this kind of place." Akira figured it would be easy to relent and the look on his face would be worth it.
"You caught me. I like your scent." Kouga nearly stopped in his tracks at such a bold statement, especially for wolves where scent meant a lot. She saw how she watched him and saw that she knew to some extent the meaning. He saw her smile innocently at him as he gawked at her. He snapped to when he heard Kagome laugh at him.
"Wow I don't think I have ever seen Kouga speechless before." Kagome continued to chuckle at Kouga who smiled and walked on the other side of Akira with his hands in his pockets. It didn't take them much longer to get to the shrine where Kagome ran to her mother to show off her graduation certificate and Diploma. After they all sat together for a celebratory dinner. They had to eat in the living room to accommodate everyone, but it was nice. Souta teased Kagome how he thought he was going to get his diploma before she ended up getting hers. When the jokes subsided, he told her how proud he was of her and then both her grandfather and Riza told her the same. Akira had already told her the same as they walked home, but to hear it from her immediate family nearly sent her to tears. After dinner was done Kagome went to her mother to give her the biggest hug and a kiss on the cheek to convey her thankfulness and love. She then went up to bed after walking Akira, Naomi, Sango, and Kouga out and saying goodnight to the others.
JennyTheWhiteWolf: Well that chapter is done and hope that you will tell me what you think.