Disclaimer: I don't own 'em, ok? But that doesn't mean I can't fantasize!
A/N: Once again, thanks for all the great reviews. They really mean so much to me. I love to write, but I so often just do it in my head, and never bother to put it to the keyboard. Your reviews inspire me to continue.
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Kagome studied her surroundings while waiting for Houjo to return from the men's room "to wash his hands." The atmosphere of the restaurant was something out of a dream: soft, dreamy music, flickering candlelight, intoxicatingly fragrant tropical flowers, a cozy fire in a small fireplace nearby their table.Kagome nestled back into her plush chair, getting a little too comfortable. She stifled a yawn and resisted the urge to stretch. Maybe she should have taken a nap when she got home.
She still wanted more than anything (well, almost anything) to go to the dance, but if she didn't perk up, she wasn't going to make it past the soup course. It wasn't going to be easy if she had to sit and listen to Houjo prattle on about various medical discoveries, and the benefits of combining holistic methods along with "Western Medicine."
Hmph. She really needed a change of attitude. 'He really is sweet. And cute. And kind. What's wrong with me?' How could any girl in her right mind rather be with a rude, arrogant, ignorant jerk compared to a nice guy like Houjo? 'I'm going to concentrate on being just with him tonight. I'm going to devote myself to finding something we can talk about that doesn't center on my supposed illnesses! There has to be something I we can talk about.
But what? It's not as if I can tell him about my day of dodging claws that were bigger than me, or discuss the best way to eradicate a demon and retrieve it's shard without killing it's innocent host. But still.there has to be something. After all, he seems to like me. Maybe I can like him back. It would make things between Inuyasha and I easier, that's for sure. Then it wouldn't so painful to see him with Kikyo. I could even be happy for them instead. Hmmm.....or maybe not. But I can have a good time tonight and not think about them...He's probably with her right now...Stop it, Baka!! Think about the dance!'
When Houjo returned, he smiled down at the pretty girl sitting at his table. She had looked a little tired when they sat down, but seemed to have brightened up now. She met his eyes and smiled. 'There has to be something we can talk about. Something in common...Oh, school, or course!' Before he could start in on a monologue about the new breakthroughs in acupuncture using lasers in place of needles, she asked, "So, what's been happening at school? What have I missed besides a lot of class time?"
As it turned out, dinner was quite pleasant. The food was delicious, of course, but the company was good too. After she brought up school, Houjo seemed to settle down a bit. He didn't seem so nervous. Soon, they were deep in a discussion about various classmates and some of the funny things that had happened in her absence. He did some very good impressions of a couple of their teachers that had Kagome laughing so hard she had tears rolling down her cheeks. 'This is nice for a change. Tears from laughter, not sadness or fear.'
A woman dressed in a peasant blouse and full skirt draped with numerous colorful scarves stopped next to their table. She had her long, dark hair tied into another scarf, and she held a shallow basket full of long stemmed roses over one arm. "Would the gentleman like to gift the lady with a beautiful rose?"
Houjo nodded and gave the woman a folded bill. She selected a perfect rose bud, long stemmed, with crimson petals that looked like velvet. "You two make such a lovely couple! I wish you an enchanted evening." And she was gone.
Houjo offered the flower to a blushing Kagome, who took it to her nose and inhaled deeply. "It's lovely, thank you." She was slightly disappointed that it didn't have much fragrance, but it was beautiful, and the thought was very sweet.
"Ummm. Kagome? I hope you don't mind my saying this, but you really look beautiful tonight." He colored slightly, but he didn't look away.
Kagome, now a even pinker than before, said, "Thank you, Houjo-kun." and thought, 'That's nice to hear, especially since I hear opinions to the contrary so often.'
"I mean, you always look pretty," he continued, " but you really look especially nice tonight. You definitely don't look like you've been, you know... unwell. In fact, if anything, you look healthier than ever! You seem to even have a little tan and your arms are more muscular than I remember them being before. Of course, you usually wear longer sleeves."
Kagome was really blushing now. She sweatdropped, and resisted the urge to scratch the back of her head. "Uh, well, uh, that must be all the camping I have been doing lately!" she stammered.
And so hey also discovered they had something else in common. Houjo said he loved camping. And while Kagome didn't actually do it for pleasure, she still did it a lot.
"You camp? Really?" Houjo was amazed. "And that's ok, with you being so, um, ill all the time?"
"Uh, yeah. The, ummmm...doctors say it's good for me. The fresh air, I mean. The air in Tokyo is too dirty, I guess." 'I KNOW. And noisy. Inuyasha is right about that.' But then she scolded herself, 'But we're not concerned with what the dog-boy thinks tonight, are we?'
"Wow, I never would have guessed!" He had a gleam in his eye, and suddenly Kagome knew with certainty and a sinking heart that she would soon be gifted with state-of-the-art flashlights and pocketknives. Oh well, at least they would be useful. Hopefully, state-of-the-art would mean lightweight, she thought when she remembered her already overstuffed pack.
They traded camping stories, carefully edited on Kagome's part. Souta took Shippo's parts, her mom took Sango's parts, and her grandfather took Miroku's parts (with the groping parts completely left out, of course). No one took Inuyasha's parts, even carefully edited, he was too unbelievable. 'And besides,' she thought stubbornly, 'I'm not thinking about him tonight.'
Houjo was telling about his latest trip with his family, when Kagome let her mind drift to her latest "experience in the wild," which was this morning. Wow, was that really just this morning??? It seemed a whole world away. Which of course, it was. That great, slavering beast had nearly chomped little Shippo! And what was the goopy brown stuff dripping from it's mouth, anyway? Eeeech! She shuddered involuntarily.
"Kagome, are you ok? Have you had enough? I could take you home if you're not feeling well. Maybe he dance is too much for you in your condition."
Oh, gods, no! Miss the dance? No way! "I'm fine, Houjo-kun. Thanks for worrying about me, but I'm ok. The doctors say dancing is good for me, too. Strengthens the heart!" She smiled reassuringly.
"Wow, Kagome-sama. You are so brave!" he said in awe.
Kagome's mind drifted to this morning again. Had she really shoved that log into the jaws of that beast to keep it from biting down on the little kitsune? She hadn't been feeling brave at the moment. She could only think about saving her friend. She sighed and thought to herself, 'Brave? You have no idea!'
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The two figures flying through the night sky were both quiet, each lost in his own thoughts. Souta was thinking pretty much what any small boy in his position would be thinking, "Wow! This is sooooo cool!" as they leapt from building to tree to building.
Inuyasha was deep in contemplation. He thought he knew a lot of things about Kagome. She is Kikyo's reincarnation. Or rather, she possesses Kikyo's soul. There is a huge difference. Where a Reincarnate would be in most respects, identical to the original, Kagome was almost nothing at all like Kikyo. Kikyo is only a small part of Kagome's soul. Kagome was strong and brave and beautiful, but she was so much more! She was warm and caring and she did some of the most amazing things. Like bringing him little treats from her world, like caring whether he was cold or not. Like giving him reasons to laugh and feel joy. Joy he couldn't remember feeling since he was a child, before he knew he was different and alone in the world. The only times he felt alone anymore were when Kagome disappeared through the well into her own world and left him behind.
But he had never known that Kagome danced. He couldn't get that photograph out of his mind. He tried to imagine her dancing in that costume, only he was the boy dancing with her instead of that wimpy guy posing with her. It was hard to do, because he had never even heard of ballet before tonight, let alone seen it. He would have to work up the courage to ask her to dance for him sometime soon.
Souta broke his train of thought when he pointed toward a low set of buildings, three stories high, in a U formation. "That's Kagome's school. Kagome said the dance is outside in the courtyard."
Inuyasha set them down in a big, old tree just inside the courtyard ~ close enough to observe the dancers, but far enough away that (he hoped) Kagome wouldn't sense him. That ground looked especially hard, and he didn't want Kagome to "Sit!" him onto it.
He made sure Souta was settled in a safe spot, and then turned his attention to the dancers. A quick survey of the dance floor told him that Kagome wasn't there yet. There were lots of couples, but none of them held any interest for him. He just sat and watched them perform strange body gyrations to the beat of the music and waited.
Souta, on the other hand, thought this was the coolest thing ever. He was higher than he had ever been, outside an airplane. Or maybe Tokyo Tower, but he hadn't been there since his dad died. He could see everything from up here! He wasn't the least bit interested in watching the dancing below, but there were plenty of other things to observe.
Inuyasha was just beginning to wonder if Kagome had changed her mind and gone home, when he suddenly caught her scent (mixed with what? Something spicy and floral?) and heard her unmistakable laughter. He loved her laughter, but he didn't hear it often enough. Somehow, instead, he always managed to lose his nerve and say something stupid, something that made her angry instead.
He looked down to see her, and his jaw almost hit the ground. There she was, her hand lightly resting on the arm of her date. But although that caused him to bristle, it wasn't what was holding his attention. It was her appearance!
She was wearing a dress that emphasized every curve of her comely body, hugging her torso, and flaring into a full skirt that fell into soft folds a few inches above her knees. The wide scoop neckline dipped low enough to reveal a just a hint of cleavage, and it had very short, cap sleeves which accentuated her sinewy arms. The deep garnet red of the material set off her smooth creamy skin and the flush of her cheeks as she laughed in peals of delight at whatever that idiot was saying. Why couldn't he make her laugh like that? And what was she laughing about, anyway? He couldn't make out what the guy was saying through all the other noise, but he could tell that he was speaking in an unnaturally high-pitched voice, and seemed to be scolding her~ his eyebrows knitted and his finger shaking at her. But Kagome continued to laugh with glee, holding her sides, tears spilling down her lovely face. He finally managed to catch a snatch of their conversation as they passed below the tree:
"Oh, Houjo-kun! That's perfect! You sound just like her!" Kagome gasped, wiping her eyes delicately with her fingers, trying not to smear her eye make-up.
'Houjo-kun?' Inuyasha growled inwardly. He had thought that she might sense his presence, but she was too busy cackling for that! 'Feh' he thought. But he didn't even convince himself.
A/N Ok, moving right along. I'll get the next chappie out as soon as I can, but I'm pretty booked this week. But I promise to try. I know it's shameless pandering, but the more reviews I get the more I feel inspired. Who doesn't, right?
A/N: Once again, thanks for all the great reviews. They really mean so much to me. I love to write, but I so often just do it in my head, and never bother to put it to the keyboard. Your reviews inspire me to continue.
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Kagome studied her surroundings while waiting for Houjo to return from the men's room "to wash his hands." The atmosphere of the restaurant was something out of a dream: soft, dreamy music, flickering candlelight, intoxicatingly fragrant tropical flowers, a cozy fire in a small fireplace nearby their table.Kagome nestled back into her plush chair, getting a little too comfortable. She stifled a yawn and resisted the urge to stretch. Maybe she should have taken a nap when she got home.
She still wanted more than anything (well, almost anything) to go to the dance, but if she didn't perk up, she wasn't going to make it past the soup course. It wasn't going to be easy if she had to sit and listen to Houjo prattle on about various medical discoveries, and the benefits of combining holistic methods along with "Western Medicine."
Hmph. She really needed a change of attitude. 'He really is sweet. And cute. And kind. What's wrong with me?' How could any girl in her right mind rather be with a rude, arrogant, ignorant jerk compared to a nice guy like Houjo? 'I'm going to concentrate on being just with him tonight. I'm going to devote myself to finding something we can talk about that doesn't center on my supposed illnesses! There has to be something I we can talk about.
But what? It's not as if I can tell him about my day of dodging claws that were bigger than me, or discuss the best way to eradicate a demon and retrieve it's shard without killing it's innocent host. But still.there has to be something. After all, he seems to like me. Maybe I can like him back. It would make things between Inuyasha and I easier, that's for sure. Then it wouldn't so painful to see him with Kikyo. I could even be happy for them instead. Hmmm.....or maybe not. But I can have a good time tonight and not think about them...He's probably with her right now...Stop it, Baka!! Think about the dance!'
When Houjo returned, he smiled down at the pretty girl sitting at his table. She had looked a little tired when they sat down, but seemed to have brightened up now. She met his eyes and smiled. 'There has to be something we can talk about. Something in common...Oh, school, or course!' Before he could start in on a monologue about the new breakthroughs in acupuncture using lasers in place of needles, she asked, "So, what's been happening at school? What have I missed besides a lot of class time?"
As it turned out, dinner was quite pleasant. The food was delicious, of course, but the company was good too. After she brought up school, Houjo seemed to settle down a bit. He didn't seem so nervous. Soon, they were deep in a discussion about various classmates and some of the funny things that had happened in her absence. He did some very good impressions of a couple of their teachers that had Kagome laughing so hard she had tears rolling down her cheeks. 'This is nice for a change. Tears from laughter, not sadness or fear.'
A woman dressed in a peasant blouse and full skirt draped with numerous colorful scarves stopped next to their table. She had her long, dark hair tied into another scarf, and she held a shallow basket full of long stemmed roses over one arm. "Would the gentleman like to gift the lady with a beautiful rose?"
Houjo nodded and gave the woman a folded bill. She selected a perfect rose bud, long stemmed, with crimson petals that looked like velvet. "You two make such a lovely couple! I wish you an enchanted evening." And she was gone.
Houjo offered the flower to a blushing Kagome, who took it to her nose and inhaled deeply. "It's lovely, thank you." She was slightly disappointed that it didn't have much fragrance, but it was beautiful, and the thought was very sweet.
"Ummm. Kagome? I hope you don't mind my saying this, but you really look beautiful tonight." He colored slightly, but he didn't look away.
Kagome, now a even pinker than before, said, "Thank you, Houjo-kun." and thought, 'That's nice to hear, especially since I hear opinions to the contrary so often.'
"I mean, you always look pretty," he continued, " but you really look especially nice tonight. You definitely don't look like you've been, you know... unwell. In fact, if anything, you look healthier than ever! You seem to even have a little tan and your arms are more muscular than I remember them being before. Of course, you usually wear longer sleeves."
Kagome was really blushing now. She sweatdropped, and resisted the urge to scratch the back of her head. "Uh, well, uh, that must be all the camping I have been doing lately!" she stammered.
And so hey also discovered they had something else in common. Houjo said he loved camping. And while Kagome didn't actually do it for pleasure, she still did it a lot.
"You camp? Really?" Houjo was amazed. "And that's ok, with you being so, um, ill all the time?"
"Uh, yeah. The, ummmm...doctors say it's good for me. The fresh air, I mean. The air in Tokyo is too dirty, I guess." 'I KNOW. And noisy. Inuyasha is right about that.' But then she scolded herself, 'But we're not concerned with what the dog-boy thinks tonight, are we?'
"Wow, I never would have guessed!" He had a gleam in his eye, and suddenly Kagome knew with certainty and a sinking heart that she would soon be gifted with state-of-the-art flashlights and pocketknives. Oh well, at least they would be useful. Hopefully, state-of-the-art would mean lightweight, she thought when she remembered her already overstuffed pack.
They traded camping stories, carefully edited on Kagome's part. Souta took Shippo's parts, her mom took Sango's parts, and her grandfather took Miroku's parts (with the groping parts completely left out, of course). No one took Inuyasha's parts, even carefully edited, he was too unbelievable. 'And besides,' she thought stubbornly, 'I'm not thinking about him tonight.'
Houjo was telling about his latest trip with his family, when Kagome let her mind drift to her latest "experience in the wild," which was this morning. Wow, was that really just this morning??? It seemed a whole world away. Which of course, it was. That great, slavering beast had nearly chomped little Shippo! And what was the goopy brown stuff dripping from it's mouth, anyway? Eeeech! She shuddered involuntarily.
"Kagome, are you ok? Have you had enough? I could take you home if you're not feeling well. Maybe he dance is too much for you in your condition."
Oh, gods, no! Miss the dance? No way! "I'm fine, Houjo-kun. Thanks for worrying about me, but I'm ok. The doctors say dancing is good for me, too. Strengthens the heart!" She smiled reassuringly.
"Wow, Kagome-sama. You are so brave!" he said in awe.
Kagome's mind drifted to this morning again. Had she really shoved that log into the jaws of that beast to keep it from biting down on the little kitsune? She hadn't been feeling brave at the moment. She could only think about saving her friend. She sighed and thought to herself, 'Brave? You have no idea!'
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The two figures flying through the night sky were both quiet, each lost in his own thoughts. Souta was thinking pretty much what any small boy in his position would be thinking, "Wow! This is sooooo cool!" as they leapt from building to tree to building.
Inuyasha was deep in contemplation. He thought he knew a lot of things about Kagome. She is Kikyo's reincarnation. Or rather, she possesses Kikyo's soul. There is a huge difference. Where a Reincarnate would be in most respects, identical to the original, Kagome was almost nothing at all like Kikyo. Kikyo is only a small part of Kagome's soul. Kagome was strong and brave and beautiful, but she was so much more! She was warm and caring and she did some of the most amazing things. Like bringing him little treats from her world, like caring whether he was cold or not. Like giving him reasons to laugh and feel joy. Joy he couldn't remember feeling since he was a child, before he knew he was different and alone in the world. The only times he felt alone anymore were when Kagome disappeared through the well into her own world and left him behind.
But he had never known that Kagome danced. He couldn't get that photograph out of his mind. He tried to imagine her dancing in that costume, only he was the boy dancing with her instead of that wimpy guy posing with her. It was hard to do, because he had never even heard of ballet before tonight, let alone seen it. He would have to work up the courage to ask her to dance for him sometime soon.
Souta broke his train of thought when he pointed toward a low set of buildings, three stories high, in a U formation. "That's Kagome's school. Kagome said the dance is outside in the courtyard."
Inuyasha set them down in a big, old tree just inside the courtyard ~ close enough to observe the dancers, but far enough away that (he hoped) Kagome wouldn't sense him. That ground looked especially hard, and he didn't want Kagome to "Sit!" him onto it.
He made sure Souta was settled in a safe spot, and then turned his attention to the dancers. A quick survey of the dance floor told him that Kagome wasn't there yet. There were lots of couples, but none of them held any interest for him. He just sat and watched them perform strange body gyrations to the beat of the music and waited.
Souta, on the other hand, thought this was the coolest thing ever. He was higher than he had ever been, outside an airplane. Or maybe Tokyo Tower, but he hadn't been there since his dad died. He could see everything from up here! He wasn't the least bit interested in watching the dancing below, but there were plenty of other things to observe.
Inuyasha was just beginning to wonder if Kagome had changed her mind and gone home, when he suddenly caught her scent (mixed with what? Something spicy and floral?) and heard her unmistakable laughter. He loved her laughter, but he didn't hear it often enough. Somehow, instead, he always managed to lose his nerve and say something stupid, something that made her angry instead.
He looked down to see her, and his jaw almost hit the ground. There she was, her hand lightly resting on the arm of her date. But although that caused him to bristle, it wasn't what was holding his attention. It was her appearance!
She was wearing a dress that emphasized every curve of her comely body, hugging her torso, and flaring into a full skirt that fell into soft folds a few inches above her knees. The wide scoop neckline dipped low enough to reveal a just a hint of cleavage, and it had very short, cap sleeves which accentuated her sinewy arms. The deep garnet red of the material set off her smooth creamy skin and the flush of her cheeks as she laughed in peals of delight at whatever that idiot was saying. Why couldn't he make her laugh like that? And what was she laughing about, anyway? He couldn't make out what the guy was saying through all the other noise, but he could tell that he was speaking in an unnaturally high-pitched voice, and seemed to be scolding her~ his eyebrows knitted and his finger shaking at her. But Kagome continued to laugh with glee, holding her sides, tears spilling down her lovely face. He finally managed to catch a snatch of their conversation as they passed below the tree:
"Oh, Houjo-kun! That's perfect! You sound just like her!" Kagome gasped, wiping her eyes delicately with her fingers, trying not to smear her eye make-up.
'Houjo-kun?' Inuyasha growled inwardly. He had thought that she might sense his presence, but she was too busy cackling for that! 'Feh' he thought. But he didn't even convince himself.
A/N Ok, moving right along. I'll get the next chappie out as soon as I can, but I'm pretty booked this week. But I promise to try. I know it's shameless pandering, but the more reviews I get the more I feel inspired. Who doesn't, right?