Disclaimer: I do not own Inu-Yasha, Kagome, Miroku, Shippo-chan,
Sesshoumaru, Jaken, Naraku, or Kaede in any way, shape or form, as much as
I wish I did. However, Katherine is mine.
Author's notes: I'm sooooooo sorry it took me so long to update! School snuck up and bit me in the butt. . But I'm back! Aren't you all glad? Last weekend, I went up in the mountains and it SNOWED! For a valley girl like me, that is a huge deal. So I spent the entire weekend being a good camp counselor, and playing in the snow. I never knew snowball fights were so much fun! One of my friends shoved her face in the snow on Friday, and when we checked to see if it was still there on Sunday, it was! Yayness!
It had been six months since Kagome had left, nine since Katherine had mysteriously appeared. Katherine…what an odd girl. She insisted on wearing her own clothes and the clothes Kagome had lent her, refusing to wear robes or a kimono. She was very different from how she had first seemed. She was extremely stoic, rarely showing any emotion except for when she felt it very strongly. For example, she would pulverize Miroku if he tried to feel her up and smile if they received a Shikon shard. But other than that, her face was a blank slate.
The other members of Inu-Yasha-tachi barely knew how her voice sounded. She would go for days, even weeks, without uttering a single syllable. Every so often, she would say a soft "Hello" "Thank you" "I'm sorry" or, at the most, "Are you alright?" Every so often, she would walk off on her own, and she could be heard singing loudly in English from wherever she was.
So when she ran through the village shrieking, "Oh my GOD!" over and over, Inu-Yasha deduced that it was a big deal.
"Inu-Yasha!" the girl shrieked, and when the hanyou didn't pay any attention, she kicked the tree. It shook so hard that Inu-Yasha was almost knocked out. He glared down at the girl and shouted, "WHAT?!" She just stomped her foot and pointed at the ground.
"Kagome! Here!" she exclaimed.
"Kagome's back?" Inu-Yasha jumped out of his tree, following the girl to the well where Kagome stood. "Kagome, you're back…" He hardly dared to believe it after she was gone so long. But somehow, she looked different. Instead of the school uniform she usually wore, she was clad in a baggy t- shirt and loose jeans which, while managing to hide most of her form, were unable to veil how skinny she had become. Her face, too, had become gaunt, and her once warm, friendly eyes were now wary and frightened. Inu-Yasha reached out to touch her, but she flinched away from his hand, a momentary look of fear passing over her features. Then she smiled, trying to hide her fear with a thin, transparent veil of cheer.
"Yes, I'm back. You know what? I don't think I'll be going back to my time for a while. After all, we need to find the Shikon shards before Naraku does!"
Inu-Yasha stared at her for a moment, comprehending what she just said. She was going to stay? Not constantly interrupt their search by going back and doing whatever the hell was so important? They could finally start getting serious about the search! A wide grin spread across his face. "You FINALLY get it!" he said. At that moment, Miroku and Shippo came up.
"What does she finally get?" Miroku asked.
"She's not going back to her world anymore," Inu-Yasha replied happily.
"Does that mean you won't bring back any sweets anymore?" Shippo asked, looking disappointedly up at Kagome.
"No," she said. "But would rather have me or sweets?"
"I guess you…but I will miss the sweets."
Katherine looked at Kagome, slightly confused. She couldn't understand what they were saying, but the fact that Kagome had changed was obvious to her.
Miroku, too, was troubled. "So, Kagome," he said. "What made you decide to stay here?"
Kagome looked at him and once again, the momentary look of fear passed over her features. Then she covered it up with a smile. "Oh, no reason," she said, trying to sound airy. "Oh, by the way, Katherine…" She dug through her pack. "I got this for you." She pulled out a small book. Katherine accepted it gingerly, then gave a small squeak when she saw the title.
"What is it?" Shippo tried to look over her shoulder, but, being as small as he was, failed. Katherine knelt and showed him the title. It said:
*Japanese-English, English-Japanese Dictionary*
~**~
Kagome had definitely changed. As was said before, she gave off a different aura. Instead of the normally cheerful, slightly hot-tempered girl she once was, she seemed scared and fragile. But, for some reason, she wouldn't let Inu-Yasha or Miroku protect her. She seemed as scared of them as she was of their opponents! Instead, she relied on Katherine, who was as ferocious a fighter as any demon they had met, for protection.
Katherine noticed the change in Kagome's attitude. One day, as they were waiting for a ferry to take them across a river, Katherine approached her. "Kagome, daijobu?" she asked worriedly.
"Hai, daijobu," Kagome replied, but Katherine shook her head.
"Liar." The silver-haired girl sat down and said, "Talk."
*Well, she won't understand anyway…* Kagome opened her mouth and the words began to spill out almost involuntarily. She couldn't stop until she was through. She turned to look at Katherine. The girl had dropped the impassionate mask, but she did not wear the look of dumb pity Kagome had expected, like the look a pet gives when you talk to it. Instead, her expression was of intelligent sympathy and understanding. Although Katherine hadn't understood Kagome's words, she understood her tone of pain and sadness. Upon seeing Katherine's expression, tears began to drip down Kagome's cheeks. In response, Katherine hugged Kagome and repeated what Kagome had told her so many months ago: "It's okay. You can cry. I understand."
~**~
"Inu-Yasha!" Inu-Yasha was sitting at the dock when Katherine came running to him. "Go…Kagome…talk…" He looked at her, trying to make sense out of her convoluted Japanese. When Katherine saw that he didn't understand her, she yelled, "ARGH!" and stormed off, pushing Miroku, who was passing by, off the dock.
Miroku surfaced and asked, "What was that about?" But Inu-Yasha didn't respond. Instead, he stared after Katherine. *Maybe I should go talk to Kagome* he thought. He had noticed the changes in her as well. He got up and walked away to find her.
~**~
"What's your problem, wench?"
Kagome flinched slightly at the sound of his voice, then glared at him. "What do you mean?"
"You're different. They way you act, the way you move, the way you talk. Hell, you even *smell* different!" Normally, this would sound worried. But Inu-Yasha could make even *that* sound rude.
"What do you know?" Kagome snapped.
"What's wrong with you? I try to act concerned and you get mad at me!"
"'Concerned'? That was 'concerned'? I go through hell and your idea of concerned is yelling! SIT!" Kagome ran away, crying.
When Inu-Yasha was out of sight and out of earshot, Kagome leaned against a tree and cried. She had cried for a good half an hour when she found herself wrapped up in a pair of red robe-clad arms. She gasped and tried to pull away, but Inu-Yasha's embrace was irresistible.
"You said you went through hell." His voice was gentle, different from before. "You're the strongest person I know, human or demon. Before now, nothing deterred you. What happened that hurt you so much?"
"You wouldn't understand," Kagome replied.
"'Not understand'? Gods, Kagome, I've suffered so much. My mother died when I was barely more than a little child. I've been shunned by nearly everyone I've ever met because of something I can't help. My only family wants to kill me. I was cruelly tricked into killing the woman I loved. Do you really think I wouldn't understand?"
Kagome thought silently for a few minutes. She had never seen this side of Inu-Yasha. True, he had suffered enough in the past. But could she trust him? Or would he betray her? After a moment of quiet contemplation, she realized she felt safe.
Inu-Yasha felt Kagome's taut muscles relax. She began to speak softly. "Naraku attacked my family. I don't know how, but he killed my mom and grandpa. Sota was hospitalized, and we were left orphans. The man who adopted us…raped me."
There was wetness on Inu-Yasha's shoulder, and he knew that Kagome was crying. He held her a little tighter. No wonder she seemed so scared all the time, and wouldn't let him or Miroku get near her. For some reason, he felt a bit guilty that he hadn't been there to protect her.
He felt her eyes on his face, so he looked and found himself staring straight into her eyes. A desire overtook him, and he saw, deep in those grey eyes, that she felt the same desire.
~**~
"!!" Katherine was peering discreetly over a rock, having a total spazz attack.
"What's going on?" Shippo asked, running over to see what she was staring at so raptly. What he saw made his mouth hang open in shock.
Miroku was curious at what could elicit such a reaction from the young kitsune and the stoic teenager, so he walked over to see as well. "Oh…" He meant to stop staring and give them due privacy, but he could not tear his eyes away from the sight of Inu-Yasha and Kagome, their lips firmly locked.
Author's notes: I'm sooooooo sorry it took me so long to update! School snuck up and bit me in the butt. . But I'm back! Aren't you all glad? Last weekend, I went up in the mountains and it SNOWED! For a valley girl like me, that is a huge deal. So I spent the entire weekend being a good camp counselor, and playing in the snow. I never knew snowball fights were so much fun! One of my friends shoved her face in the snow on Friday, and when we checked to see if it was still there on Sunday, it was! Yayness!
It had been six months since Kagome had left, nine since Katherine had mysteriously appeared. Katherine…what an odd girl. She insisted on wearing her own clothes and the clothes Kagome had lent her, refusing to wear robes or a kimono. She was very different from how she had first seemed. She was extremely stoic, rarely showing any emotion except for when she felt it very strongly. For example, she would pulverize Miroku if he tried to feel her up and smile if they received a Shikon shard. But other than that, her face was a blank slate.
The other members of Inu-Yasha-tachi barely knew how her voice sounded. She would go for days, even weeks, without uttering a single syllable. Every so often, she would say a soft "Hello" "Thank you" "I'm sorry" or, at the most, "Are you alright?" Every so often, she would walk off on her own, and she could be heard singing loudly in English from wherever she was.
So when she ran through the village shrieking, "Oh my GOD!" over and over, Inu-Yasha deduced that it was a big deal.
"Inu-Yasha!" the girl shrieked, and when the hanyou didn't pay any attention, she kicked the tree. It shook so hard that Inu-Yasha was almost knocked out. He glared down at the girl and shouted, "WHAT?!" She just stomped her foot and pointed at the ground.
"Kagome! Here!" she exclaimed.
"Kagome's back?" Inu-Yasha jumped out of his tree, following the girl to the well where Kagome stood. "Kagome, you're back…" He hardly dared to believe it after she was gone so long. But somehow, she looked different. Instead of the school uniform she usually wore, she was clad in a baggy t- shirt and loose jeans which, while managing to hide most of her form, were unable to veil how skinny she had become. Her face, too, had become gaunt, and her once warm, friendly eyes were now wary and frightened. Inu-Yasha reached out to touch her, but she flinched away from his hand, a momentary look of fear passing over her features. Then she smiled, trying to hide her fear with a thin, transparent veil of cheer.
"Yes, I'm back. You know what? I don't think I'll be going back to my time for a while. After all, we need to find the Shikon shards before Naraku does!"
Inu-Yasha stared at her for a moment, comprehending what she just said. She was going to stay? Not constantly interrupt their search by going back and doing whatever the hell was so important? They could finally start getting serious about the search! A wide grin spread across his face. "You FINALLY get it!" he said. At that moment, Miroku and Shippo came up.
"What does she finally get?" Miroku asked.
"She's not going back to her world anymore," Inu-Yasha replied happily.
"Does that mean you won't bring back any sweets anymore?" Shippo asked, looking disappointedly up at Kagome.
"No," she said. "But would rather have me or sweets?"
"I guess you…but I will miss the sweets."
Katherine looked at Kagome, slightly confused. She couldn't understand what they were saying, but the fact that Kagome had changed was obvious to her.
Miroku, too, was troubled. "So, Kagome," he said. "What made you decide to stay here?"
Kagome looked at him and once again, the momentary look of fear passed over her features. Then she covered it up with a smile. "Oh, no reason," she said, trying to sound airy. "Oh, by the way, Katherine…" She dug through her pack. "I got this for you." She pulled out a small book. Katherine accepted it gingerly, then gave a small squeak when she saw the title.
"What is it?" Shippo tried to look over her shoulder, but, being as small as he was, failed. Katherine knelt and showed him the title. It said:
*Japanese-English, English-Japanese Dictionary*
~**~
Kagome had definitely changed. As was said before, she gave off a different aura. Instead of the normally cheerful, slightly hot-tempered girl she once was, she seemed scared and fragile. But, for some reason, she wouldn't let Inu-Yasha or Miroku protect her. She seemed as scared of them as she was of their opponents! Instead, she relied on Katherine, who was as ferocious a fighter as any demon they had met, for protection.
Katherine noticed the change in Kagome's attitude. One day, as they were waiting for a ferry to take them across a river, Katherine approached her. "Kagome, daijobu?" she asked worriedly.
"Hai, daijobu," Kagome replied, but Katherine shook her head.
"Liar." The silver-haired girl sat down and said, "Talk."
*Well, she won't understand anyway…* Kagome opened her mouth and the words began to spill out almost involuntarily. She couldn't stop until she was through. She turned to look at Katherine. The girl had dropped the impassionate mask, but she did not wear the look of dumb pity Kagome had expected, like the look a pet gives when you talk to it. Instead, her expression was of intelligent sympathy and understanding. Although Katherine hadn't understood Kagome's words, she understood her tone of pain and sadness. Upon seeing Katherine's expression, tears began to drip down Kagome's cheeks. In response, Katherine hugged Kagome and repeated what Kagome had told her so many months ago: "It's okay. You can cry. I understand."
~**~
"Inu-Yasha!" Inu-Yasha was sitting at the dock when Katherine came running to him. "Go…Kagome…talk…" He looked at her, trying to make sense out of her convoluted Japanese. When Katherine saw that he didn't understand her, she yelled, "ARGH!" and stormed off, pushing Miroku, who was passing by, off the dock.
Miroku surfaced and asked, "What was that about?" But Inu-Yasha didn't respond. Instead, he stared after Katherine. *Maybe I should go talk to Kagome* he thought. He had noticed the changes in her as well. He got up and walked away to find her.
~**~
"What's your problem, wench?"
Kagome flinched slightly at the sound of his voice, then glared at him. "What do you mean?"
"You're different. They way you act, the way you move, the way you talk. Hell, you even *smell* different!" Normally, this would sound worried. But Inu-Yasha could make even *that* sound rude.
"What do you know?" Kagome snapped.
"What's wrong with you? I try to act concerned and you get mad at me!"
"'Concerned'? That was 'concerned'? I go through hell and your idea of concerned is yelling! SIT!" Kagome ran away, crying.
When Inu-Yasha was out of sight and out of earshot, Kagome leaned against a tree and cried. She had cried for a good half an hour when she found herself wrapped up in a pair of red robe-clad arms. She gasped and tried to pull away, but Inu-Yasha's embrace was irresistible.
"You said you went through hell." His voice was gentle, different from before. "You're the strongest person I know, human or demon. Before now, nothing deterred you. What happened that hurt you so much?"
"You wouldn't understand," Kagome replied.
"'Not understand'? Gods, Kagome, I've suffered so much. My mother died when I was barely more than a little child. I've been shunned by nearly everyone I've ever met because of something I can't help. My only family wants to kill me. I was cruelly tricked into killing the woman I loved. Do you really think I wouldn't understand?"
Kagome thought silently for a few minutes. She had never seen this side of Inu-Yasha. True, he had suffered enough in the past. But could she trust him? Or would he betray her? After a moment of quiet contemplation, she realized she felt safe.
Inu-Yasha felt Kagome's taut muscles relax. She began to speak softly. "Naraku attacked my family. I don't know how, but he killed my mom and grandpa. Sota was hospitalized, and we were left orphans. The man who adopted us…raped me."
There was wetness on Inu-Yasha's shoulder, and he knew that Kagome was crying. He held her a little tighter. No wonder she seemed so scared all the time, and wouldn't let him or Miroku get near her. For some reason, he felt a bit guilty that he hadn't been there to protect her.
He felt her eyes on his face, so he looked and found himself staring straight into her eyes. A desire overtook him, and he saw, deep in those grey eyes, that she felt the same desire.
~**~
"!!" Katherine was peering discreetly over a rock, having a total spazz attack.
"What's going on?" Shippo asked, running over to see what she was staring at so raptly. What he saw made his mouth hang open in shock.
Miroku was curious at what could elicit such a reaction from the young kitsune and the stoic teenager, so he walked over to see as well. "Oh…" He meant to stop staring and give them due privacy, but he could not tear his eyes away from the sight of Inu-Yasha and Kagome, their lips firmly locked.