Okay, the opening theme for Hana Yori Dango is one hella catchy song! And since I finished my Japanese, am practically insane with caffeine energy, and can't seem to concentrate on something as simple as knitting, it's back to the old…er…writing board? Oh, I'd like to officially recognize and thank my new beta reader Jade! I don't think I have great need for a beta reader, but it's always nice to have, plus I'm sure she digs the fact that she gets to read these before anyone else. I'm kinda unsure that she'd actually catch any typos I make though, since she tears through my chapters like Inuyasha eats ramen. You blink and you miss it. Oh well, at least I get to pretend like I'm being all professional. Ja! On with part 9! This one may be a bit long since I really don't want to start my Chem lab report.
*****
All I Needed Was You
Part 9
*****
The children know that there,
That there's something wrong,
And it's hard to believe that love will prevail.
Oh it won't rain all the time.
The sky won't fall forever.
And though the night seems long,
Your tears won't fall forever.
Oh, when I'm lonely,
I lie awake at night
And I wish you were here.
I miss you.
Can you tell me
Is there something more to believe in?
Or is this all there is?
-Jane Siberry It Can't Rain All The Time
"That was a lot better, Asako." Shippo smiled warmly at the sixteen year old as she stood up, brushing dirt from her fighting gear hastily before standing ready. Her mother had made the gear, which was modeled after Sango's own fighting outfit. "You almost had me that time."
"Well just you wait." Asako grinned at him cockily. "I'll knock you down soon enough."
"Feh, we'll see about that." Shippo beckoned her forward and she narrowed her eyes before moving in cautiously, aiming a few katas at his upper body. Shippo blocked them easily and shook his head. "You see, you don't charge with enough power. You can't scare your enemy if you approach so timidly that—ungh." Shippo was so busy trying to explain her mistakes that he didn't catch on to her double feinted punch followed by a hard kick until he had been completely crumpled under the clever maneuver. Asako bent over him, her grin twice as large and smugger than before.
"What were you saying, Shippo?" she asked him, tilting her head as though patiently waiting for a response. Shippo took advantage of her overconfident pose to leap and tackle her beneath him in the soft grass.
"I was saying that you should never underestimate your enemy." Shippo told her, smiling as she scowled up at him. "You have to think before you act, Asako. Who is stronger here, a human or a youkai?"
"Yeah but—" she tried to argue, but Shippo covered her mouth with his hand, causing her scowl to deepen.
"Now, who would be stronger here?" Shippo asked again, thoroughly enjoying this.
"Youkai." She mumbled, rolling her purple eyes in irritation.
"So…what was your mistake there?" he asked her in a very patronizing tone. He made sure that his hands held her wrists pinned to the ground and he sat heavily on her legs so that she wouldn't be able to hit him for his behavior. She glared at him viciously, waiting a moment before finally answering his question.
"I treated you like a normal human, thinking that you'd be incapacitated by my kick, but since you're a stubborn youkai, you were ready to attack when I had to gloat over your defeat. Plus I should've factored in that you're an arrogant asshole who would attack when the round is over just to prove he's still better." Asako told him. Shippo raised an eyebrow and she stuck her tongue out at him.
"All right, since you're being a baby I think we'll call it a day." Shippo stood up and offered her a hand. Scowling at him, Asako pushed herself up without his aid.
"Hmph." She jutted her chin out as she passed him, crossing her arms under her breasts. Unintentionally swaying her hips as she strode away from him, Asako pulled her hair out of it's high ponytail and shook it out, pulling her fingers through the smooth ebony locks. Shippo didn't realize he was watching her so intently until Inuyasha's voice cropped up in his head. You can tell what a great woman she'll be. It won't be long before she's…a lot different looking he'd told Shippo almost six years ago. How true those words had been. Asako was a beautiful young woman now, full of life and strength, but behind it all lingered a deep sadness. Shippo still blamed himself for what had happened to Kanjou so long ago, and he knew that Asako in turn felt it was her fault for being unable to fight youkai herself. She had made Shippo promise he'd train her to be stronger, and true to his word they had been student and teacher ever since. The only thing was that Shippo himself wasn't a very strong fighter. He was a fox youkai who preferred to rely on his magic than worry about actually physical fighting, but he definitely knew more about than she did. So he devoted himself to her, and after all this time, she had transformed into something beautiful and strong.
My Asako… the thought sprang to his mind unbidden and Shippo automatically ignored it. She was a sister to him, nothing more. After the night she'd confessed to Shippo that she longed to become a woman he could love, and he had told her it would never happen, she had treated him as nothing more than a brother or a friend. And when they fought, she never let even that connection bother her. When they fought, he was her enemy, and she understood that. Women are powerful and mysterious things. Inuyasha had said that as well, and it too had been true. He could still recall a tiny Asako climbing into his bed every night and snuggling against his tail as though it were a prized stuffed animal. He could still remember a young Asako running to him for help at the slightest problem, from a stubbed toe to getting yelled at to scraped knees, she had always been confident that he could make everything all right again. Even when Kanjou died, she'd turned to him for comfort, even confessing her adoring love to him. He had been too confused by the idea of a "little girl" loving him that way at the time to really understand how much he'd meant to her. It's too late for that now. She's become something better than I'll ever be.
Women take you by surprise and they change you into something you thought you'd never be Inuyasha's voice answered him promptly. Shut up, you don't know what you're talking about Shippo thought irritably as he trudged up the hill only to see that Asako was still there, sitting in the grass and gazing out across the treetops, her hair blowing behind her lazily in the light breeze. She's beautiful, that's for sure. Shippo gulped, shoving the thought aside. Shut up, you can't have her and you know it he chided himself. Nonetheless, he sat down beside her wondering casually where all the years had gone to. They sat there for a long while, until the sun was disappearing behind the trees and the skies were streaked with color.
"I wish I was as strong as you." She finally spoke up. "I wish I could fly through the treetops again."
"Like when we were younger?" he asked.
"Yeah. I remember thinking that nothing would ever be as wonderful as those times that you flew me through the forest, easy as taking a little walk. Remember how I'd play up in the high branches when we stopped, totally sure that you'd never let me fall?" she asked, turning to him, her purple eyes glowing softly.
"Remember how you'd beg me to take all of you on little trips and swear you'd all be good until I finally agreed?" he returned. "And then the three of you would fight the whole time anyway. I was always positive that you'd go to far and shove someone off and I wouldn't be able to catch them."
"Remember how upset I'd get when you called me a little girl?" she giggled.
"Remember how you told me you'd become a woman soon and I'd love you then?" he asked, regretting the careless words as soon as they left his lips. Asako was silent and frozen for a few moments, but then she replied, her voice cold and emotionless.
"I was stupid and naïve then." She told him shortly.
"Asako…I'm sorry, I got carried away…I didn't think…" Shippo spoke haltingly. He saw Asako's lips purse tightly and she stood up, every muscle in her body completely rigid.
"It doesn't matter anymore, does it?" she asked, her voice caustic. "Why should you care if a little girl bared her heart and it was thrown away?"
"Asako…please." Shippo rose, his green eyes full of concern. "I…I just…"
"What?" she asked impatiently, whirling to face him, fury burning in her violet eyes. "You just what? You just didn't care? I gathered that much."
"I just…maybe…" Shippo shook his head angrily, trying to clear it and gain control over his words. He looked down at her once more, "Maybe that boy was too stupid to see what it was that he was being handed." He offered.
"Well maybe he should have looked closer." She shot back.
"Maybe he was too confused by everything in his life to look at something new." Shippo told her.
"Maybe her heart was broken that night." Asako told him.
"And maybe he didn't really see that until it was too late for him to fix things." Shippo responded.
"Then maybe she wanted to hate him, but she couldn't and she ended up hating herself instead." Asako's voice wavered.
"Maybe she should look at herself and see how much there is to love." Shippo told her.
"Maybe someone…someone should tell her what there could possibly be…" Asako looked up at him, hope and fear glinting in her eyes.
"Well maybe she can't see that she's strong and good and selfless and…and that she has grown into a woman that I could love." Shippo blushed as the words left his mouth.
"But…I'm…you told me…you'd never want…" Asako didn't know what to say to that. A blush was staining her own cheeks as Shippo stepped closer to her, touching her cheek softly.
"And maybe…maybe I wonder if I've become the kind of man that could deserve that woman." Shippo told her softly, "Because for a long time…I thought you didn't want me anymore, that I'd never get a chance to make up for my mistakes."
"Shippo…I never…you were always…" Asako stopped, closing her eyes tightly as though organizing her thoughts. When they opened once more, the purple depths swirled with a kind of light Shippo had never seen before. "Maybe you should kiss me." Shippo nodded slightly, moving forward, his lips parted slightly when…
He woke up.
"What the…what was with that dream?" He muttered, yawning and rolling over to look at Asako sleeping across the room. True, she had become a beautiful woman, but he could never…wouldn't ever…
"Mm, Shippo, something wrong?" she asked after opening her eyes slowly to the invading rays of daylight filtering into the room. That must have been what had interrupted his dream. And just when it was getting to the good part—wait! What was he thinking of? But it was true, he hadn't really seen her in that light before, but now that he looked at her, he realized Asako had grown up into a beauty. You can tell what a great woman she'll be. It won't be long before she's…a lot different looking Inuyasha's voice invaded his thoughts. Yes, look at the way her hair shines and ripples as she moves. Even as she's just waking up, Asako is gorgeous, with those big eyes and—Shippo sharply cut off his train of thought. Had he gone crazy because of a stupid dream? He wasn't in love with her. It was just that…sometimes… You might discover things you can only see when you look in her eyes Inuyasha's voice volunteered. Shut up! I'm not in love with her…am I? Shippo groaned and buried his face in his blankets as though he could push away such thoughts.
"Um, Shippo?" he felt a hand on his shoulder and almost leapt five feet in the air. He turned quickly and saw Asako almost nose to nose with him, her purple eyes quizzical. Such pretty eyes…a stray thought plastered a goofy smile on his face. Quickly, he shook it off, growling at himself in displeasure. Stupid mind! Who told you to think that! Just because she's so close that all I can smell is her and her lips are pink and looked so soft…Shippo shook his head slightly again. That's it, no more thinking for you, stupid brain. What are you trying to do to me here? Shippo looked up and noticed with a certain amount of surprise that Asako was still right there, blinking in curiosity at him. "Are you feeling fine?" leaning forward, she pressed her lips to Shippo's forehead momentarily. Of course that's what she was doing; she wouldn't kiss me. Though I wonder how she'd taste if—Shippo pursed his lips. What did I say about thinking? None! Just stop until I can figure things out! "You don't seem to have a fever, but you sure are making some weird faces." She surmised.
"I'm just kind of…preoccupied." He told her.
"I know. Less than a week until…it's been six years." She shivered slightly, and without thinking, Shippo put his arms around her unresisting form. He pulled her close, patting her hair as he kissed the top of her hair. Watch what you're doing, lips, or you'll be stuck in the same place as the brain he warned the rebellious body parts. You too, hands. I'm watching you he glared at his clawed hands, one wrapped around her back and the other in her hair.
"Come on now, Asako." Shippo whispered to her. "You'll be okay. We'll all be okay. You know that."
"I know." Her voice was muffled inside his sleeping yukata, but still easily audible. "I just…I thought…if I became stronger."
"We've been over this, Asako." He told her firmly. "It wasn't your fault and you know it."
"But…that's not what I mean." Asako pulled back slightly to look up at him. "When I became stronger…like now…I thought that I'd be happy again knowing that I could protect the people I care about." Asako sniffled lightly, her eyes watering slightly. "But…it seems like it doesn't matter how strong I become. I still feel something…something's missing inside of me. I've felt that way ever since…the day it happened and I always hoped that…by now at least it would be better."
"Asako…" Shippo wasn't sure what to say.
"But look at me! I'm still…not strong." Tears spilled out of her eyes. "I cry…so much. It's just…it's stupid."
"Asako, you are strong." Shippo told her softly. "You're one of the strongest women I've ever known."
"I…I'm not." She argued, crying freely now as Shippo let her bury her head on his shoulder.
"Come on, Asako, don't be silly. You know you're strong." Shippo told her soothingly. "It doesn't make a difference if you cry sometimes. It's not like you don't have a reason."
"You…you think?" she asked, looking up slowly.
"Of course. And you know, Kagome cried a lot more than you when she was your age." He confided.
"Really?" she sniffled, smiling faintly as Shippo brushed away her tears with his thumb. "She did?"
"Yeah, but that's because she was in love with stupid Inuyasha and he didn't have a clue about how to react to that." Shippo smiled softly. "It's hard for women to fall in love, I guess. Men aren't always…paying attention and they always do things that hurt them even if they didn't mean to. Even with your mom and dad…"
"Tell me." She prompted, pulling herself up in his lap and laying the side of her head against his chest. Her yukata had come a bit loose from all her hysterics, and from where he was, Shippo could see straight—Stop it eyes! I swear, are any of you body parts on my side here? Shippo shook his head in irritation.
"About your mom and dad?" Shippo asked.
"Yeah." She prompted. It was strange, but she'd never really asked about her parents before; how they met, how they fell in love, any of it. She seemed satisfied to see them still so very much in love, always sneaking kisses or giggling in the other room. Shippo was actually surprised they'd only had one child with how the two of them were. When he thought about it, though, he'd never asked his own parents about how they'd met or any of those things. He supposed that when a child had happy, loving parents, they didn't really question how that came about. "How did they meet?" she asked, prompting him to break the silence.
"Huh, I don't think you'll believe me." He told her, smiling at the memories. "But the first time they saw each other, she threw her Hiraikotsu at us."
"She attacked you?" Asako asked doubtfully.
"Yeah. You see, do you remember I once explained that your mom is a demon exterminator?" Shippo asked and she nodded. "Well, she's the last of her village. There was an evil kind of hanyou guy named Naraku who basically killed all her people and then tricked her into thinking it was Inuyasha. So she came to find us for revenge, in full battle gear. Myouga told Inuyasha not to fight her since he knew she wasn't really a bad person, but she kept attacking, so he was going to fight her. Then Naraku showed up, so Inuyasha totally ignored her to go fight him instead since…he has a grudge against him. Anyway, lots of people were out to kill Naraku. Your dad was, too."
"My dad?" Asako asked. "Why?"
"Well…I'm not really sure I should tell you all this stuff, but Naraku had cursed your dad's grandfather with an air void in his hand. It sucks up everything, and they had to use a rosary to seal it, but it wasn't a permanent seal. Eventually, his grandfather was swallowed up by it. Same thing happened to his dad, and Miroku knew that his only hope was to kill Naraku and escape the curse." Shippo explained.
"I think you're making all this up." She told him teasingly. "There's no way my daddy had some…hole in his hand like that. And I really don't think my mom would attack you guys like that."
"Well if you don't believe me, that's your own problem." Shippo teased her back. "Anyway, they all wanted to kill Naraku, so Inuyasha was stuck fighting your mom while your dad went after stupid Naraku. Yeah, your mom was no match for Inuyasha, but that didn't bother her. She stabbed him straight in the arm, but I'm sure you know from training with me that we youkai can't be as easily hurt as humans." Shippo explained. "But see, your mom was dying from before she even got there. Naraku was controlling her little brother and he attacked her. She almost died from those injuries, so Naraku gave her a Shikon shard so that she'd be able to fight without feeling the pain."
"Shikon shard?" Asako asked.
"See, you know that necklace Kagome always wears? The one with the shiny purple ball?" Shippo asked. "That's the Shikon no Tama, and when Inuyasha and Kagome first met, she accidentally lost it and then, when she tried to shoot a youkai to get it back, she hit the jewel and blasted it into all these tiny shards. The Shikon no Tama is very powerful, and Inuyasha used to want to use it to become human, but Kagome wouldn't let him."
"Why not?" she asked.
"She thinks his ears are cute and that it would be a shame if she couldn't ever see them again." Shippo laughed, as did Asako. "Anyway, your mom almost died because she damaged her wounds more, not feeling any pain because the shard was blocking it. Later, she realized the truth about Naraku and she started to travel with your dad, Kagome, Inuyasha, and me."
"How'd they fall in love then?" Asako asked, eager to learn more now. She couldn't think of why she hadn't ever asked before. This story was so entertaining.
"Well, I think it was obvious that your dad thought a lot of your mom straight from the beginning. He always got in trouble for it though, because he was a little bit…more obvious with his affections than most girls like." Shippo grinned. "I can't even count the times she slapped him for groping her. But somewhere along the line, even though he was a lech, your mom started to see that really, he was just afraid of having her love him and then being hurt when his air void sucked him up. When she realized this, she went and confessed her own feelings, and then your mom and dad were really happy. Kagome was so pleased for them, but Inuyasha was a little miffed at first since Kagome knew right away that they would end up together, and he thought she was foolish. You know how he hates being wrong, so he kind of took it as a personal insult when they did get together."
"Wow, he was really petty." Asako commented. Shippo chuckled at this.
"Yeah, he was. Plus, I think he was jealous that Miroku and Sango got what they wanted, but he was still too much of a coward to do anything about how he loved Kagome." Shippo explained. "But then, Sango got pregnant with you. This would have been okay, but the mission to kill Naraku and get all the shards hadn't finished yet. Also, your dad was really worried about his air void. He could feel that it was close to the end, so to spare your mom, he told her he couldn't love her anymore. If he would have known about you, I don't think Miroku would have done anything so stupid, but he did. Sango left immediately to stay with Kaede until you were born. She didn't want Miroku to be with her just because of you." Shippo explained.
"How do you know all this stuff?" Asako wanted to know.
"Well I was there, plus, Kagome explained it to me." Shippo told her. "Anyway, it was almost right after that when Naraku was finally defeated. He had the last pieces of the Shikon no Tama, so after he was gone, we were done. Kagome was so happy that she must have forgotten to be shy, and she kissed Inuyasha. Needless to say, they stayed together after that. And when Kagome accidentally let it slip in front of Miroku that Sango was pregnant…well, we left them to talk and it must have worked out, as you can see."
"I never really thought my parents had such an exciting life." Asako sighed happily. "Thanks for talking to me, Shippo. I feel a lot better." She hugged him tight before leaving the room so that Shippo could wonder why it was that she seemed to have such a strong affect over him.
----------
"Hey, Inuyasha," Shippo ran up to the hanyou who was pulling his wife and daughter from inside the well. "Inuyasha, I've been hoping you'd visit soon." Shippo told him, looking extremely harried.
"Ha, I've never been greeted this soon since the days of the Shikon shard." Kagome smiled with pleasure at the memory. "Inuyasha, do you remember how you used to mope around waiting here for me to come back from my time?"
"I was…just bored." He pouted at being embarrassed in front of Shippo and Aiko.
"Oh, drop the act Inuyasha." Shippo snorted. "We all know you're in love."
"Did you want something then?" Inuyasha shifted the subject as they all started walking back toward Sango and Miroku's house.
"Yeah, I kinda wanted to ask you about something in private." Shippo confirmed.
"Well, wait until we get there, okay?" Inuyasha told him. They noticed Kagome kept staring at Shippo. "What is it?" Inuyasha asked.
"Oh, I just can't get over it every time I see Shippo." Kagome clasped her hands together happily. "Do you remember how tiny he used to be? And here he is, all grown up." Shippo and Inuyasha sighed in exasperation.
"She's such a woman." Inuyasha muttered in irritation and Shippo nodded. Just then, Asako came tearing up the path and skidded to a halt right before she hit them.
"Oh! You're here! Good, now I won't have to bring Shippo lunch every day." Asako sighed happily and fell in beside Shippo.
"No one asked you to." The kitsune told her.
"Well you're too stupid to feed yourself unless there's something right in front of you." Asako stuck her tongue out at him. She aimed a punch at his side, but he twirled away and grabbed her arm. Soon the two of them were wrestling on the ground. Kagome raised an eyebrow at them then cast Inuyasha a meaningful glance.
"Are you two going to play around there all day, or are we going back to your house?" Inuyasha asked them finally. The two of them froze, blushing guiltily as they disentangled themselves and stood up.
"He started it." Asako couldn't resist.
"What? You tried to hit me, crazy woman!" Shippo shot back.
"Only because you weren't appreciating how I brought you lunch every day." Asako stuck out her tongue.
"Hey! Am I going to have to separate you two, or are you going to be able to keep your hands off each other?" Inuyasha asked. This time the blushes were a lot darker than before.
"Come on, mom, we're almost there!" Aiko exclaimed, her bright eyes flashing as she dragged her mother down the path while the rest followed until they were standing in front of Sango and Miroku's house. Kagome and Aiko went straight in the house, but Asako didn't leave Shippo and Inuyasha.
"Go on, Asako. I need to talk to Inuyasha about something important." Shippo urged her away. She pulled a stubborn face before complying. The hanyou and the kitsune went and sat under a tree.
"So, what is it?" Inuyasha didn't waste time.
"I've been feeling a bit strange lately, and I wondered if it wasn't something that all youkai go through. I know you're a hanyou, but—" Shippo babbled.
"Well what is it?" Inuyasha wanted to know.
"It's…it started about a month ago." Shippo explained, trying not to sound as uncomfortable as he felt. "I had this…dream and ever since then…I can't stop thinking…things."
"Hmm, having dreams and thinking things. Good thing you told me before you started seeing stuff too. This sounds serious." Inuyasha couldn't resist the sarcastic jibe.
"No! Not like that…" Shippo struggled to control his blush. "In my dream, see, I almost kissed Asako. I don't really remember anything else but that part. And ever since then, I keep thinking about how pretty she is, and I think all kinds of things like that. Like the other day, she tripped and I caught her, and my mind just shouted 'Kiss her!' and I had to be really careful so I didn't."
"I don't really see what the problem is here." Inuyasha snorted incredulously.
"Well…I can't be in love with her." Shippo told him. "There must be something wrong with me."
"Why can't you love her?" Inuyasha wanted to know. "She's a woman and you're a man. What's the problem?"
"She's…she's Asako." Shippo told him.
"That's a pretty sad excuse for a reason." Inuyasha rolled his eyes and stood up. "Look, this isn't some youkai problem or anything like that. You're in love with her. It's obvious she wants you too, so why don't you just save yourself a lot of grief and go through with it? Do you remember how miserable Kagome and I were when we went through this same thing? Do you want that?"
"No…but, I just didn't think that this could happen." Shippo answered lamely, not standing up, but remaining beside the tree.
"Yeah, join the club." Inuyasha shook his head ruefully. "It's like I said, Shippo. You have to watch out for women because before you know what's happening, they'll work their way under your skin and you won't even be able to get rid of them if you want to. They change who you are. Not a lot, but enough. And the worst thing is that they aren't even trying to change us. It just happens that way."
"Man…" Shippo let out a long breath.
"You coming in?" Inuyasha asked, gesturing to the house.
"No thanks." Shippo shook his head. "I think I need to be alone for a little bit."
"I know. I did too." Inuyasha gave him a sympathetic pat on the head before turning to go back to the house.
Shippo couldn't believe what was happening. He was in love with Asako? How had that happened? How long had he felt this way? He had always loved her in one way, but not like this…how could this have happened?
"Shippo? Are you okay?" Asako was suddenly there, hovering over him.
Kiss her
*****
The End (Of Part 9, That Is)