I wanted to get this chapter up before x-mas..so here it is! ^_^;..Oh, like I said in the last chapter, this story is probably going to be wrapping up in about six more chapters..that's an estimate, and in all truth it's highly unlikely...^_^;..It'll probably be around eighteen chappies. I already have an idea for another story..I'll write the first few chapters to see what its like..Hint Hint..The Inu gang goes Medieval......Just warning you now..This story might not end happily...someone dies, but i'm not saying who. ...*cough*...^.^....
There'll be a big 'ole plot twist in this chapter...You have been warned!
Disclaimer: I don't own *anything*, okay? o.O
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Chapter Nine: A Kitsune's Worst Nightmare
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"WHERE IS IT?!" The sound of scuffling and banging echoed loudly around the semi-empty house.
Kagome had been up bright and early that morning, throwing every object nearby aside to look for her missing journal. Already piles of broken plastic and pillows lie strewn about her floor in careless stacks, and she was determined to strip search every nook and cranny to find the book. Try as she might, though, the object was nowhere to be seen.
Dread had long ago replaced panic, and deep down she knew that someone had it in their possession...Hopefully it wasn't the blood thirsty reporters.
Her diary contained every vision she had ever had written in full detail - not to mention a few private thoughts, and in all importance she HAD to get it back.
"Shit!" She cursed at herself, throwing aside a pile of school books that were lying around the floor of her closet. "Where did it go?!" She stamped her foot impatiently, the anger of losing the sacred item rising. Pretty soon she was down right furious, and would have smashed every glass object in the house, except for the fact that her will overpowered her anger, and she was never really one to act on a dime, anyway..
"Okay, okay...Calm down Kag...Where did you have it last?" She tapped her cheek pensively, rewinding the past days events until her thoughts stumbled upon the escapade with Inuyasha and the hammock.
In a flash she was down the stairs, through the kitchen (and a rather confused little brother), and into the backyard.
"Where are you?" She growled dropping to her knees and desperately clawing at the rather deep grass around the hammock and tree trunks. The sharp blades glided past her fingertips as she guided them around, but didn't come in contact with anything except for a few dirt clods.
"Damn.." She sighed, running a hand through her sweat-drenched hair.
The backyard was the last place she had had it, she was sure..Yet there wasn't even a trace of the sunset red cover.
"Great.." She mumbled, dusting herself off as she took off across the yard and into the kitchen with a rather disheartening expression plastered on her face. Anyone watching would think she had just lost her best friend, which, in a way, she had..
"What's up, sis?" Souta questioned innocently from his position in one of the table chairs. A bright silver spoon was plastered to his nose, and he was looking up at the ceiling with utmost concentration.
"Nothing...I just lost...Snow, again." She thought up quickly, slumping down into a chair beside her brother.
Souta sneezed abrubtly, causing the spoon to drop into the bowl of cheerios set before him on the table. The round specks of bread shot up in the air, landing onto the table in various shapes.
"Souta..I think the purpose is to eat with the spoon.." She sighed, wiping a droplet of milk off her sleeve before resting her forehead against the cool wooden table. The cold felt good, especially after her frantic wild goose chase.
"Whatever." He grunted, retrying his attempt at spoon-balancing.
"I think my brother's been possessed by a demon..Or rather, a hanyou.." She mused, glaring up at him.
"Feh."
Well, that was all proof she needed.
The sound was pushed out of her mind, however, as she spied a group of cheerios clumped together beside Souta's blue plastic bowl. There were two small orbs surrounding a larger one, and that shape seemed awfully familiar. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, though...Actually, it sort of reminded her of a-
"Shippo!" She squeaked, standing up in a quick, fluid motion. "Thanks Souta!" The swinging door was rocking back and forth on its hinges almost immediately, and Kagome heard a splat and clatter as something hard came in contact with something else. "Awww man, sis!! I was ten seconds away from a record!"
~*~*~
Kagome pulled into the oh-so-creepy gas station mere minutes later. The same broken down and forlorn looking scenery stared back at her - The missing roof tiles, the weed-encovered pavement, and the empty, pitch black windows. Except for this time, it wasn't so scary. 'You won't get me this time, you little bugger..'
She dusted off her jacket slowly before stepping over the broken concrete and into the old building.
A slight smile tugged at her lips as the familiar soulless orbs stared back at her from the other side of the counter. The 'old man' was obviously completely unaware that she had figured out his little game, because after a few moments he began rocking back and forth in the same loony matter that had frieked her out previously.
"I knew you would be back." He rasped out, clutching at the counter with an old, gnarled hand.
"Yeah, I couldn't resist your charm." She smiled sweetly, inching closer to the nearest shelf. "Ya got any food? I'm starved." She ran her finger down the dusty boxes, 'tsking' about the cleaning job. "You obviously haven't been keeping this store up to date..No wonder you don't get any business" She scoffed turning her gaze back
to the now trembling old man.
"Don't touch that.." The old man growled - or at least attempted. To Kagome, it sounded more like a squeak.
"Oh, I'm sorry.." She turned back to the counter, her shoulder coming in contact with a particularly large box. The square object rattled before toppling out of its space and onto the floor with a bang.
The old man lurched up, moving quickly around the counter (especially for an old man) - but Kagome was quicker.
Out of all the objects that had fallen out of the cardboard container, one in particular had caught her attention, and she picked it up just as the man rounded on her.
"Don't-!" He stopped inches away from her, his blue eyes suddenly not so lifeless. But Kagome cut him off.
"Hmmm...What could this be?" Smushed between her fingertips was a small scrap of paper with something scribbled on it.- an ofuda if she wasn't mistaken. The paper was oldish looking, well at least it appeared to be that way.
Kagome wasn't a complete fool, however. The paper she now held so carelessly had been charmed, and recently. And the strip that looked ancient in human eyes, was actually quite new, judging by the texture.
It was a transformation scroll. Well, a miniature one.
Her grandfather, being the expert that he was on youkai, had preached her to death on this particular subject. 'Youkai that are able to shift forms must always enchant an object to help them retain their appearance - Usually a scrap of paper, or a statue.'
"Shippo." She stated flatly, moving the paper until it rested between her forefingers.
The old man simply pursed his lips, lowering his eyebrows in a scowl. He had been caught.
The paper made only a small ripping noise as it was shredded with no mercy until only choice few pieces remained. The ink-blotched writing of the bits glowed red before disappearing completely, and the piece of stationary remaining curled up and wilted into ash.. She turned her hand, watching the gray smudges drift towards the floor.
A loud 'pop' resonated from in front of her, and where the old man had stood there was now a small boy - Well, youkai.
"Much better." She smiled, sitting down in front of him.
The boy merely snorted, crossing his arms and giving her a would be scowl. Unfortunately for him, his childish features made it absolutely impossible to make any look mean.
"I'm Kagome, Shippo." She continued, her smile widening as he finally decided to give up on the death glare.
He merely pouted.
Kagome was prepared for this. It was a well known fact that most kitsunes wouldn't be caught dead talking to a human (or miko), and it seemed like this one was no exception to the rule. Fortunately, she had remembered this, and stashed something in her jacket pocket that no fox child could resist.
"Well, I suppose you aren't going to talk to me." She giggled quietly.
This comment received a scoff from the other end.
"It's a shame, really.." This did achieve some sort of reaction from the boy, and his ears twitched back and forth curiously.
"What's a shame?" He finally squeaked, giving up on his sullen attitude.
"Oh, I was just going to share this with you." She reached into her jacket pocket, pulling out a brightly wrapped hershey's bar.
The young kitsune's eyes narrowed at her, and he eyed the bar curtly before turning his nose up in disgust. "I can't be bribed so easily, ya know."
"Oh..That's too bad." She sighed, pulling another bar out of her pocket. "I guess I'll eat them by myself." The outside covering of one of the bars was ripped away, revealing the dark brown candy, and she was in the process of moving up to her mouth when the object was so rudely snatched from her hands.
Shippo stuffed the entire bar into his mouth, climbing up her shirt to perch on her shoulder. She raised an eyebrow at his behavior, but he simply shrugged, chomping away until it was all gone.
....
"It's a start." He smiled, revealing shiny, white teeth.
"So you'll talk now?"
"Nope. Give me the other one, and I might." He grinned at her, crossing his arms proudly.
She giggled at the kitsune's antics. "I'll give you half, but then you have to talk." She flashed him a bright smile before breaking off half of the other bar and handing to the greedy child.
And then he proceeded to not-so-politely stuff his face.
She took this opportunity to stand up, brushing herself off before walking over to the sales counter. There was an assortment of papers strewn about, mostly old newspaper articles and a few photos. Pretty old from the looks of it. If the papers were old, the counter was ancient. It was stained yellow from so many spills, dust, and age, and there was probably an inch think layer of grime piled on top.
Shippo, being finished munching on his goodies, hopped off of her shoulder and onto the termite eaten counter with one smooth motion.
"So what do ya want to know?" He chirped brightly, smiling in satisfaction at the recent sugar intake.
"Why are you haunting old buildings, first off." She propped her elbows on the only clean looking portion of the counter, resting her face in her hands.
"It keeps people from bugging me." He looked around at the shop before his eyes rested back on her.
"Why?"
"Humans don't really like youkai that much..If you haven't noticed already." He sighed, tapping his cheek thoughtfully.
It was the truth. Youkai and humans had been fighting a silent battle since the government made their stay in public domain legal.
"Yes..I've noticed." She rolled her eyes up to the ceiling momentarily. "So why this building?"
"Well, most people don't come around old haunted buildings." He yawned loudly, jumping back onto her shoulder.
'Unlike me..'....."How long have you been here?"
"About six years now." He paused slightly, curling up like a kitten in the folds of her jacket. "I'm searching for a youkai named Naraku."
She straighted suddenly, almost causing the kitsune to go flopping to the floor. "Naraku? What do you know about him?"
"I don't know much..Just that he killed my mother and father.." Kagome felt the kitsune's claws pierce through her jacket. "He stole their souls.."
"Stole..Their souls?" Kagome repeated slowly, letting the sentence melt into her thoughts. "I'm sorry.." She muttered quietly, reaching up to lie a comforting hand on the kitsune's shoulder. It was meant to be a gesture of understanding, but truthfully his claws were starting to hurt, so it was more of a 'leggo' expression. He got the hint, apparently, because the feel of claws was gone in an instant.
"And you say he's a youkai?" She whispered, and in return felt the nod of the boy's head. This was definately getting confusing..
Kagome stretched out the silence deliberately, choosing instead to continue scanning the old scraps of paper littered across the desk. "Do you know what these are?"
"Those papers? Nope..They were already here."
"Oh.." Kagome lifted a stack of the papers. They were newspaper articles, old cut-outs and clippings. One particular caught her attention, and she shuffled the article out of the group.
The title didn't look too old compared to all the rest, and the text was actually readable. There was an ink smear here and there, but she could make out the title, which read: "Single Man Escapes Mass Murdering."
A few blotches were left blank where time had wiped away its evidence, but most of the column was readable. It was something along the lines of.
Mr. Myouga Fleagh was discovered alive at the murder site of what now is to be called the 'Feudal Massacre.' 37 Year old Myouga was found unconcious amid the horrible scene. The body count for this disaster totals to forty-five people brutally tortured and murdered, all strangely baring the mark of a spider. Miraculously, Fleagh was mostly unharmed, and is the only one alive who survived this epic event. Police officers are led to believe a mysterious youkai by the name of Narak-
The paper was cut off after that, and Kagome shuffled the stack again, picking out another seemingly interesting entry.:
Mr. Myouga Fleagh, only surviver of the 'Feudal Massacre', was placed in a mental institution today after a violent outburst in a local supermarket. Fleagh is currently being supervised at "Shikon Institution for the Mentally Impaired."-
Dark fluid had spread over the rest of the paragraph, scarring it from view. Kagome set the paper down slowly. "I can't believe it.."...Her father's case was quickly turning ugly. In fact, the police force might not just be dealing with a drug contract, but a crazed youkai bent on murder and destruction...'What have we gotten ourselves into?'...
"Kagome?" The kitsune startled her from her reverie.
"Oh, sorry..I must've dazed off .." She handed the kitsune the rest of his payment, and he accepted it rather gratefully. "Hey, Shippo?"
"Ymph?"
"Why do you keep staying here?"
The kitsune swallowed the clump of food forcefully before responding. "Well, I don't have anywhere else to go.."
Kagome smiled sadly..She felt sorry for him..."How about you come stay with me?..I'm looking for Naraku, too..We can look together."
The kitsune hopped back onto the counter, looking up at her with wide eyes. "R-Really?"
"Yeah..It gets pretty lonely searching by yourself all the time." She giggled, scratching the kitsune's ear. "So how about it?"
"Well.." He took one last look around the old beat down store. "I'd love to...but I can't."
"Oh, really?" This wasn't exactly the reaction she had been looking for.
"Yes..This is my home..Well, it wasn't a first, and when I came here I was mad because I have to move a lot. But then I realized something important. A home isn't just somewhere where your memories and family are located - Home is wherever your heart leads you." He muttered solemnly, puffing out his chest.
He was right, of course.
"Yeah..I'm glad one of us understands that." She fished her truck keys from their position in her jacket pocket, taking the few steps to the exit. "Hey Shippo?"
"Yes?"
"Thanks."
"No problem..Just remember, if you ever need a friend i'll be here."
"Yeah..I'll remember that.." She walked back out into the daylight, stretching her abused muscles. She had been in there studying the articles and talking to Shippo for a little over an hour.
Her truck door popped open with a snap, and she was about to slide inside (and would have) except for the sound of claws against the concrete behind her. A force scrambled into her back, clinging onto the fabric of her shirt.
"S-Shippo?" She hoped it was the kitsune. It was either him, or some random bird getting its kicks..
The said kitsune skittered over her back and onto the leather drivers seat. Without much warning, he buried his face into the cloth of her sweater. "Wait! Don't leave!"
"Huh?"
"I'll be alone.."
"Huh?"
"Can I please go home with you? I don't want to be alone..I'm scared." The kitsune was trembling, and Kagome smiled despite herself. "Of course...But i'm driving.."
"Yes!" The fuzzy ball that was the kitsune was soon located in the passenger seat, jumping up and down and squealing at the scenery.
The rumble of the engine died into the distance, leaving the old retired station to stand peacefully by itself.
..Along with two piercing red eyes.
~~~~~~~~~~~~*~*~*
By the time they arrived at home, Shippo had already curled up in Kagome's lap and fallen fast asleep.
'Poor thing..'..He hadn't had a mother figure almost all of his life, or a father figure for that matter. And being left alone, it was a wonder he had survived at all.
She gently stroked his back before picking up the bundle and hopping out of the truck.
The house was almost completely silent. Well, it would have been if not for the blaring noise coming from the television. Souta was propped up on the couch, snoring logs again..That boy was something else...There was a lump on the floor underneath him..and it looked mysteriously like..
"Inuyasha!" She hissed, clenching her jaw.
The hanyou hadn't even noticed her presence, and just continued to stare at the television. At least until Kagome stepped in front of it.
"What in the *hell* are you doing in my house...again?" She snapped, shifting her weight and recieving an almost inaudible grumble from the kitsune being held in her arms.
Inuyasha was by her side in seconds.
"What in the seven hells is this thing?" He wrenched Shippo up by his tail, dangling him over the floor. "Is it a Chia Pet?" Inuyasha accentuated the comment by jangling the poor boy up and down like a paddle-ball.
"Owowowow! Leggo!" Shippo shifted his position, biting the hanyou in his arm -hard.
"Ouch!! You're going to pay for that you little wretch!" Inuyasha shook the boy violently.
This earned him a slap across the face from an angered Kagome, and she glared at him until he finally released the poor boy, whom promptly jumped back into the safety of her arms.
"You never answered my question, Inuyasha." She spat, stomping her foot.
"Your father asked me to watch you again." He snorted, sneering as Shippo stuck out his tongue, waggling it around. "You little fu-!"
"Out!" She pointed towards the door angrily.
"Keh." The hanyou merely gave the kitsune a -you're-going-to-pay look before stomping across the room, slamming the door behind him.
"You'll have to excuse Inuyasha, Shippo.." Kagome sighed, "He caught a rather bad case of the stupid as a child.."
~~~~~~~~~~~~*~*~*
The gymnasium doors were already unlocked, so the famliar silver haired hanyou didn't have to crawl across the ceiling and break a window - this time.
The double doors closed with a bang, and Inuyasha was left smothered by darkness. It would have been soffocating for a human, but youkai could see in the dark, so it didn't really bother him.
He tapped his foot impatiently against the wood, breaking the silence. "Are you here, Naraku?"
"Yes." The dark youkai's deep voice rang out from somewhere above him, and Inuyasha craned his neck to see the familiar shape of the man standing on one of the support beams attached to the roof. The figure jumped down, landing softly in front of the other half-demon.
Familiar gold eyes stared into red. Not a good combination.
"Do you have it?" Naraku questioned flatly, giving him a blank look out of the corner of his eyes.
"Yes." Inuyasha fished into his jacket for something, holding up a familiar sunset-colored diary to the red-eyed hanyou.
Naraku snatched the book, flipping through the pages hurridly.
"Will you leave her alone, now?" Inuyasha questioned after a time, crossing his arms impatiently.
The only response was the flip of a page.
Naraku slammed the book closed after a few minutes, passing it back to the other. "Just as I thought..This is no ordinary miko...Foolish girl."
"You didn't answer my question." The silver-haired hanyou snapped, his voice dripping venom.
Naraku smiled coldly, making sure to catch the ray of moonlight cascading from the only open window above them. "Oh no, Inuyasha....This just means you'll have to kill her sooner."
Inuyasha just stared at him blankly. Inside, however, he was seething. "You said there would be no need for blood-shed."
"You are obviously unaware of the extent of this girl's power." Naraku pulled an all-too-familiar baboon mask over his face, leaving only his glowing red eyes to be shown. "When I revive the dark witch, you'll become a full youkai. Isn't that what you've always wished for? This girl stands in the way of that wish..Destroy her, Inuyasha."
Naraku straightened his clothing slightly before continuing. "Either you do it, or Kouga will."
Inuyasha growled at the wolf youkai's name. The stupid runt had already tried that before, and very nearly blew the entire operation with his tiny slip-up the night of the party.
"..Fine." He managed finally, the sound cold and emotionless.
"She is the final piece of the puzzle, Inuyasha." Naraku's voice now sounded from the rafters, but Inuyasha didn't bother to look up. "Make her fall in love, and then crush her. It is a strong world, and the weak must perish."
There was a fanning noise, then emptyness.
Inuyasha simply turned on his heels and started on his familiar route back to his house. He couldn't help his lip from turning up in a snarl..He had killed many before, but this would be different. Kagome wasn't like all of the other humans, she didn't look down on him like he was a bug... and she didn't deserve what fate had in store.
The scenery flashed by, and Inuyasha sped up, letting the cool wind brush against his face.
He had partnered with Naraku a little under a year ago, right when his mother died. He didn't know what had possessed him to join him. Perhaps it was the need to be a full youkai, perhaps it was the feeling of emptyness, of loss..He didn't know..
But as he landed onto his roof with a thud, and breathed in the familiar scent of his neighbor, the thoughts and cares of the world seemed to fade, and he was left with a completeness...That's how he felt whenever he was near her..
Even though they had met just a few days ago, it felt to Inuyasha like he had known her his entire life..
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Wow, this chapter was incredibly easy to write..^_^;;..I hope you guys like it, and sorry about Inuyasha turning out to be evil..(you saw it coming, right?)...Yeah.....Don't worry...Everything is going to turn out to be okay..Well, for some..*evil laugh*..And yes..%^&%%^&%%%^ dies....;...I'll be updating in a few days, maybe even tommorow...[if I wake up..it's 2:30 a.m.]...*faints*...Nah..I'm a night fiend....
Next Chapter: Wheelchairs and High Heels
There'll be a big 'ole plot twist in this chapter...You have been warned!
Disclaimer: I don't own *anything*, okay? o.O
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Chapter Nine: A Kitsune's Worst Nightmare
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"WHERE IS IT?!" The sound of scuffling and banging echoed loudly around the semi-empty house.
Kagome had been up bright and early that morning, throwing every object nearby aside to look for her missing journal. Already piles of broken plastic and pillows lie strewn about her floor in careless stacks, and she was determined to strip search every nook and cranny to find the book. Try as she might, though, the object was nowhere to be seen.
Dread had long ago replaced panic, and deep down she knew that someone had it in their possession...Hopefully it wasn't the blood thirsty reporters.
Her diary contained every vision she had ever had written in full detail - not to mention a few private thoughts, and in all importance she HAD to get it back.
"Shit!" She cursed at herself, throwing aside a pile of school books that were lying around the floor of her closet. "Where did it go?!" She stamped her foot impatiently, the anger of losing the sacred item rising. Pretty soon she was down right furious, and would have smashed every glass object in the house, except for the fact that her will overpowered her anger, and she was never really one to act on a dime, anyway..
"Okay, okay...Calm down Kag...Where did you have it last?" She tapped her cheek pensively, rewinding the past days events until her thoughts stumbled upon the escapade with Inuyasha and the hammock.
In a flash she was down the stairs, through the kitchen (and a rather confused little brother), and into the backyard.
"Where are you?" She growled dropping to her knees and desperately clawing at the rather deep grass around the hammock and tree trunks. The sharp blades glided past her fingertips as she guided them around, but didn't come in contact with anything except for a few dirt clods.
"Damn.." She sighed, running a hand through her sweat-drenched hair.
The backyard was the last place she had had it, she was sure..Yet there wasn't even a trace of the sunset red cover.
"Great.." She mumbled, dusting herself off as she took off across the yard and into the kitchen with a rather disheartening expression plastered on her face. Anyone watching would think she had just lost her best friend, which, in a way, she had..
"What's up, sis?" Souta questioned innocently from his position in one of the table chairs. A bright silver spoon was plastered to his nose, and he was looking up at the ceiling with utmost concentration.
"Nothing...I just lost...Snow, again." She thought up quickly, slumping down into a chair beside her brother.
Souta sneezed abrubtly, causing the spoon to drop into the bowl of cheerios set before him on the table. The round specks of bread shot up in the air, landing onto the table in various shapes.
"Souta..I think the purpose is to eat with the spoon.." She sighed, wiping a droplet of milk off her sleeve before resting her forehead against the cool wooden table. The cold felt good, especially after her frantic wild goose chase.
"Whatever." He grunted, retrying his attempt at spoon-balancing.
"I think my brother's been possessed by a demon..Or rather, a hanyou.." She mused, glaring up at him.
"Feh."
Well, that was all proof she needed.
The sound was pushed out of her mind, however, as she spied a group of cheerios clumped together beside Souta's blue plastic bowl. There were two small orbs surrounding a larger one, and that shape seemed awfully familiar. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, though...Actually, it sort of reminded her of a-
"Shippo!" She squeaked, standing up in a quick, fluid motion. "Thanks Souta!" The swinging door was rocking back and forth on its hinges almost immediately, and Kagome heard a splat and clatter as something hard came in contact with something else. "Awww man, sis!! I was ten seconds away from a record!"
~*~*~
Kagome pulled into the oh-so-creepy gas station mere minutes later. The same broken down and forlorn looking scenery stared back at her - The missing roof tiles, the weed-encovered pavement, and the empty, pitch black windows. Except for this time, it wasn't so scary. 'You won't get me this time, you little bugger..'
She dusted off her jacket slowly before stepping over the broken concrete and into the old building.
A slight smile tugged at her lips as the familiar soulless orbs stared back at her from the other side of the counter. The 'old man' was obviously completely unaware that she had figured out his little game, because after a few moments he began rocking back and forth in the same loony matter that had frieked her out previously.
"I knew you would be back." He rasped out, clutching at the counter with an old, gnarled hand.
"Yeah, I couldn't resist your charm." She smiled sweetly, inching closer to the nearest shelf. "Ya got any food? I'm starved." She ran her finger down the dusty boxes, 'tsking' about the cleaning job. "You obviously haven't been keeping this store up to date..No wonder you don't get any business" She scoffed turning her gaze back
to the now trembling old man.
"Don't touch that.." The old man growled - or at least attempted. To Kagome, it sounded more like a squeak.
"Oh, I'm sorry.." She turned back to the counter, her shoulder coming in contact with a particularly large box. The square object rattled before toppling out of its space and onto the floor with a bang.
The old man lurched up, moving quickly around the counter (especially for an old man) - but Kagome was quicker.
Out of all the objects that had fallen out of the cardboard container, one in particular had caught her attention, and she picked it up just as the man rounded on her.
"Don't-!" He stopped inches away from her, his blue eyes suddenly not so lifeless. But Kagome cut him off.
"Hmmm...What could this be?" Smushed between her fingertips was a small scrap of paper with something scribbled on it.- an ofuda if she wasn't mistaken. The paper was oldish looking, well at least it appeared to be that way.
Kagome wasn't a complete fool, however. The paper she now held so carelessly had been charmed, and recently. And the strip that looked ancient in human eyes, was actually quite new, judging by the texture.
It was a transformation scroll. Well, a miniature one.
Her grandfather, being the expert that he was on youkai, had preached her to death on this particular subject. 'Youkai that are able to shift forms must always enchant an object to help them retain their appearance - Usually a scrap of paper, or a statue.'
"Shippo." She stated flatly, moving the paper until it rested between her forefingers.
The old man simply pursed his lips, lowering his eyebrows in a scowl. He had been caught.
The paper made only a small ripping noise as it was shredded with no mercy until only choice few pieces remained. The ink-blotched writing of the bits glowed red before disappearing completely, and the piece of stationary remaining curled up and wilted into ash.. She turned her hand, watching the gray smudges drift towards the floor.
A loud 'pop' resonated from in front of her, and where the old man had stood there was now a small boy - Well, youkai.
"Much better." She smiled, sitting down in front of him.
The boy merely snorted, crossing his arms and giving her a would be scowl. Unfortunately for him, his childish features made it absolutely impossible to make any look mean.
"I'm Kagome, Shippo." She continued, her smile widening as he finally decided to give up on the death glare.
He merely pouted.
Kagome was prepared for this. It was a well known fact that most kitsunes wouldn't be caught dead talking to a human (or miko), and it seemed like this one was no exception to the rule. Fortunately, she had remembered this, and stashed something in her jacket pocket that no fox child could resist.
"Well, I suppose you aren't going to talk to me." She giggled quietly.
This comment received a scoff from the other end.
"It's a shame, really.." This did achieve some sort of reaction from the boy, and his ears twitched back and forth curiously.
"What's a shame?" He finally squeaked, giving up on his sullen attitude.
"Oh, I was just going to share this with you." She reached into her jacket pocket, pulling out a brightly wrapped hershey's bar.
The young kitsune's eyes narrowed at her, and he eyed the bar curtly before turning his nose up in disgust. "I can't be bribed so easily, ya know."
"Oh..That's too bad." She sighed, pulling another bar out of her pocket. "I guess I'll eat them by myself." The outside covering of one of the bars was ripped away, revealing the dark brown candy, and she was in the process of moving up to her mouth when the object was so rudely snatched from her hands.
Shippo stuffed the entire bar into his mouth, climbing up her shirt to perch on her shoulder. She raised an eyebrow at his behavior, but he simply shrugged, chomping away until it was all gone.
....
"It's a start." He smiled, revealing shiny, white teeth.
"So you'll talk now?"
"Nope. Give me the other one, and I might." He grinned at her, crossing his arms proudly.
She giggled at the kitsune's antics. "I'll give you half, but then you have to talk." She flashed him a bright smile before breaking off half of the other bar and handing to the greedy child.
And then he proceeded to not-so-politely stuff his face.
She took this opportunity to stand up, brushing herself off before walking over to the sales counter. There was an assortment of papers strewn about, mostly old newspaper articles and a few photos. Pretty old from the looks of it. If the papers were old, the counter was ancient. It was stained yellow from so many spills, dust, and age, and there was probably an inch think layer of grime piled on top.
Shippo, being finished munching on his goodies, hopped off of her shoulder and onto the termite eaten counter with one smooth motion.
"So what do ya want to know?" He chirped brightly, smiling in satisfaction at the recent sugar intake.
"Why are you haunting old buildings, first off." She propped her elbows on the only clean looking portion of the counter, resting her face in her hands.
"It keeps people from bugging me." He looked around at the shop before his eyes rested back on her.
"Why?"
"Humans don't really like youkai that much..If you haven't noticed already." He sighed, tapping his cheek thoughtfully.
It was the truth. Youkai and humans had been fighting a silent battle since the government made their stay in public domain legal.
"Yes..I've noticed." She rolled her eyes up to the ceiling momentarily. "So why this building?"
"Well, most people don't come around old haunted buildings." He yawned loudly, jumping back onto her shoulder.
'Unlike me..'....."How long have you been here?"
"About six years now." He paused slightly, curling up like a kitten in the folds of her jacket. "I'm searching for a youkai named Naraku."
She straighted suddenly, almost causing the kitsune to go flopping to the floor. "Naraku? What do you know about him?"
"I don't know much..Just that he killed my mother and father.." Kagome felt the kitsune's claws pierce through her jacket. "He stole their souls.."
"Stole..Their souls?" Kagome repeated slowly, letting the sentence melt into her thoughts. "I'm sorry.." She muttered quietly, reaching up to lie a comforting hand on the kitsune's shoulder. It was meant to be a gesture of understanding, but truthfully his claws were starting to hurt, so it was more of a 'leggo' expression. He got the hint, apparently, because the feel of claws was gone in an instant.
"And you say he's a youkai?" She whispered, and in return felt the nod of the boy's head. This was definately getting confusing..
Kagome stretched out the silence deliberately, choosing instead to continue scanning the old scraps of paper littered across the desk. "Do you know what these are?"
"Those papers? Nope..They were already here."
"Oh.." Kagome lifted a stack of the papers. They were newspaper articles, old cut-outs and clippings. One particular caught her attention, and she shuffled the article out of the group.
The title didn't look too old compared to all the rest, and the text was actually readable. There was an ink smear here and there, but she could make out the title, which read: "Single Man Escapes Mass Murdering."
A few blotches were left blank where time had wiped away its evidence, but most of the column was readable. It was something along the lines of.
Mr. Myouga Fleagh was discovered alive at the murder site of what now is to be called the 'Feudal Massacre.' 37 Year old Myouga was found unconcious amid the horrible scene. The body count for this disaster totals to forty-five people brutally tortured and murdered, all strangely baring the mark of a spider. Miraculously, Fleagh was mostly unharmed, and is the only one alive who survived this epic event. Police officers are led to believe a mysterious youkai by the name of Narak-
The paper was cut off after that, and Kagome shuffled the stack again, picking out another seemingly interesting entry.:
Mr. Myouga Fleagh, only surviver of the 'Feudal Massacre', was placed in a mental institution today after a violent outburst in a local supermarket. Fleagh is currently being supervised at "Shikon Institution for the Mentally Impaired."-
Dark fluid had spread over the rest of the paragraph, scarring it from view. Kagome set the paper down slowly. "I can't believe it.."...Her father's case was quickly turning ugly. In fact, the police force might not just be dealing with a drug contract, but a crazed youkai bent on murder and destruction...'What have we gotten ourselves into?'...
"Kagome?" The kitsune startled her from her reverie.
"Oh, sorry..I must've dazed off .." She handed the kitsune the rest of his payment, and he accepted it rather gratefully. "Hey, Shippo?"
"Ymph?"
"Why do you keep staying here?"
The kitsune swallowed the clump of food forcefully before responding. "Well, I don't have anywhere else to go.."
Kagome smiled sadly..She felt sorry for him..."How about you come stay with me?..I'm looking for Naraku, too..We can look together."
The kitsune hopped back onto the counter, looking up at her with wide eyes. "R-Really?"
"Yeah..It gets pretty lonely searching by yourself all the time." She giggled, scratching the kitsune's ear. "So how about it?"
"Well.." He took one last look around the old beat down store. "I'd love to...but I can't."
"Oh, really?" This wasn't exactly the reaction she had been looking for.
"Yes..This is my home..Well, it wasn't a first, and when I came here I was mad because I have to move a lot. But then I realized something important. A home isn't just somewhere where your memories and family are located - Home is wherever your heart leads you." He muttered solemnly, puffing out his chest.
He was right, of course.
"Yeah..I'm glad one of us understands that." She fished her truck keys from their position in her jacket pocket, taking the few steps to the exit. "Hey Shippo?"
"Yes?"
"Thanks."
"No problem..Just remember, if you ever need a friend i'll be here."
"Yeah..I'll remember that.." She walked back out into the daylight, stretching her abused muscles. She had been in there studying the articles and talking to Shippo for a little over an hour.
Her truck door popped open with a snap, and she was about to slide inside (and would have) except for the sound of claws against the concrete behind her. A force scrambled into her back, clinging onto the fabric of her shirt.
"S-Shippo?" She hoped it was the kitsune. It was either him, or some random bird getting its kicks..
The said kitsune skittered over her back and onto the leather drivers seat. Without much warning, he buried his face into the cloth of her sweater. "Wait! Don't leave!"
"Huh?"
"I'll be alone.."
"Huh?"
"Can I please go home with you? I don't want to be alone..I'm scared." The kitsune was trembling, and Kagome smiled despite herself. "Of course...But i'm driving.."
"Yes!" The fuzzy ball that was the kitsune was soon located in the passenger seat, jumping up and down and squealing at the scenery.
The rumble of the engine died into the distance, leaving the old retired station to stand peacefully by itself.
..Along with two piercing red eyes.
~~~~~~~~~~~~*~*~*
By the time they arrived at home, Shippo had already curled up in Kagome's lap and fallen fast asleep.
'Poor thing..'..He hadn't had a mother figure almost all of his life, or a father figure for that matter. And being left alone, it was a wonder he had survived at all.
She gently stroked his back before picking up the bundle and hopping out of the truck.
The house was almost completely silent. Well, it would have been if not for the blaring noise coming from the television. Souta was propped up on the couch, snoring logs again..That boy was something else...There was a lump on the floor underneath him..and it looked mysteriously like..
"Inuyasha!" She hissed, clenching her jaw.
The hanyou hadn't even noticed her presence, and just continued to stare at the television. At least until Kagome stepped in front of it.
"What in the *hell* are you doing in my house...again?" She snapped, shifting her weight and recieving an almost inaudible grumble from the kitsune being held in her arms.
Inuyasha was by her side in seconds.
"What in the seven hells is this thing?" He wrenched Shippo up by his tail, dangling him over the floor. "Is it a Chia Pet?" Inuyasha accentuated the comment by jangling the poor boy up and down like a paddle-ball.
"Owowowow! Leggo!" Shippo shifted his position, biting the hanyou in his arm -hard.
"Ouch!! You're going to pay for that you little wretch!" Inuyasha shook the boy violently.
This earned him a slap across the face from an angered Kagome, and she glared at him until he finally released the poor boy, whom promptly jumped back into the safety of her arms.
"You never answered my question, Inuyasha." She spat, stomping her foot.
"Your father asked me to watch you again." He snorted, sneering as Shippo stuck out his tongue, waggling it around. "You little fu-!"
"Out!" She pointed towards the door angrily.
"Keh." The hanyou merely gave the kitsune a -you're-going-to-pay look before stomping across the room, slamming the door behind him.
"You'll have to excuse Inuyasha, Shippo.." Kagome sighed, "He caught a rather bad case of the stupid as a child.."
~~~~~~~~~~~~*~*~*
The gymnasium doors were already unlocked, so the famliar silver haired hanyou didn't have to crawl across the ceiling and break a window - this time.
The double doors closed with a bang, and Inuyasha was left smothered by darkness. It would have been soffocating for a human, but youkai could see in the dark, so it didn't really bother him.
He tapped his foot impatiently against the wood, breaking the silence. "Are you here, Naraku?"
"Yes." The dark youkai's deep voice rang out from somewhere above him, and Inuyasha craned his neck to see the familiar shape of the man standing on one of the support beams attached to the roof. The figure jumped down, landing softly in front of the other half-demon.
Familiar gold eyes stared into red. Not a good combination.
"Do you have it?" Naraku questioned flatly, giving him a blank look out of the corner of his eyes.
"Yes." Inuyasha fished into his jacket for something, holding up a familiar sunset-colored diary to the red-eyed hanyou.
Naraku snatched the book, flipping through the pages hurridly.
"Will you leave her alone, now?" Inuyasha questioned after a time, crossing his arms impatiently.
The only response was the flip of a page.
Naraku slammed the book closed after a few minutes, passing it back to the other. "Just as I thought..This is no ordinary miko...Foolish girl."
"You didn't answer my question." The silver-haired hanyou snapped, his voice dripping venom.
Naraku smiled coldly, making sure to catch the ray of moonlight cascading from the only open window above them. "Oh no, Inuyasha....This just means you'll have to kill her sooner."
Inuyasha just stared at him blankly. Inside, however, he was seething. "You said there would be no need for blood-shed."
"You are obviously unaware of the extent of this girl's power." Naraku pulled an all-too-familiar baboon mask over his face, leaving only his glowing red eyes to be shown. "When I revive the dark witch, you'll become a full youkai. Isn't that what you've always wished for? This girl stands in the way of that wish..Destroy her, Inuyasha."
Naraku straightened his clothing slightly before continuing. "Either you do it, or Kouga will."
Inuyasha growled at the wolf youkai's name. The stupid runt had already tried that before, and very nearly blew the entire operation with his tiny slip-up the night of the party.
"..Fine." He managed finally, the sound cold and emotionless.
"She is the final piece of the puzzle, Inuyasha." Naraku's voice now sounded from the rafters, but Inuyasha didn't bother to look up. "Make her fall in love, and then crush her. It is a strong world, and the weak must perish."
There was a fanning noise, then emptyness.
Inuyasha simply turned on his heels and started on his familiar route back to his house. He couldn't help his lip from turning up in a snarl..He had killed many before, but this would be different. Kagome wasn't like all of the other humans, she didn't look down on him like he was a bug... and she didn't deserve what fate had in store.
The scenery flashed by, and Inuyasha sped up, letting the cool wind brush against his face.
He had partnered with Naraku a little under a year ago, right when his mother died. He didn't know what had possessed him to join him. Perhaps it was the need to be a full youkai, perhaps it was the feeling of emptyness, of loss..He didn't know..
But as he landed onto his roof with a thud, and breathed in the familiar scent of his neighbor, the thoughts and cares of the world seemed to fade, and he was left with a completeness...That's how he felt whenever he was near her..
Even though they had met just a few days ago, it felt to Inuyasha like he had known her his entire life..
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~*~*
Wow, this chapter was incredibly easy to write..^_^;;..I hope you guys like it, and sorry about Inuyasha turning out to be evil..(you saw it coming, right?)...Yeah.....Don't worry...Everything is going to turn out to be okay..Well, for some..*evil laugh*..And yes..%^&%%^&%%%^ dies....;...I'll be updating in a few days, maybe even tommorow...[if I wake up..it's 2:30 a.m.]...*faints*...Nah..I'm a night fiend....
Next Chapter: Wheelchairs and High Heels