A/N: Ok everyone! I'm back! No, I'm not dead……..but that truly was a HORRIBLE hiatus I put you guys on. But, here's the chapter. I do promise though that the chapters from now on will be on a faster update. 'Kay, hope you enjoy this chappy of Living Life!

Shilyn: That is actually a great idea, but the way I have the plot line going, it wouldn't work out in this story. Perhaps as an epilogue or at the final chapter or something I might have a new member enter the family. But for now, I really just want the story focused around the trio-Taro, Kagome, and Inuyasha. But thanks for the idea anyway! (besides, I know where your coming from about how you felt before you got your little brother……..that was the same with me with my little sister……….but now I wish I was an only child because I swear she's a spawn of the devil himself…XD)

Alrighty then, onto the story!

Living Life

Chapter 2

Doppelganger

Taro watched his parents leave the schoolyard, feeling only a little disappointed. Thanks to Shippo's non-stop chattering, Taro's jitters dissolved into calmness. Sadly, Taro couldn't help feeling sorry for the little firecracker.

During their "get-to-know-you" conversation, Taro found out Shippo's life had not been an easy one. From what he was told, Shippo's parents were killed in a fire when he was only a baby. Infant or not, being a youkai gave Shippo the strength he needed to live. His father had gotten Shippo and his mother out of the apartment before it collapsed. His father was crushed by the falling building. If things couldn't get worse, his mother inhaled too much smoke when she was inside and had to be rushed to the hospital. She died in the middle of the night, and Shippo was put up for adoption. Because of his demon appearance, it was awhile before he was finally adopted. Fortunately, a kind, old woman had done the good deed.

"What was her name?" Taro asked.

"Mmmmm…..I think it's Kaede. That's what everyone calls her. But I just call her sobo-chan."

"Wow, I guess all demons have a price to pay."

"Yeah," Shippo sighed. "But you know, it's not all that bad being a demon. Take us for example. You've been excluded your whole life, and I've never ad a real family. But look at us now. I'm very happy living with sobo-chan, and you have your Mommy, Daddy, and me, a true friend. So life can't be that bad, right?"

"Yeah, I guess so," Taro said.

Shippo only half nodded, his attention suddenly turned to a girl sitting under a tree and reading. She had a bushy, brown ponytail that sat at the top of her head and a glittering fragment tied on a gold string that hung around her neck.

"Who's that?" Taro asked.

"Who……?" Shippo said in a daze.

"The girl you're staring at."

Shippo blinked a few times before turning to Taro. "Who? Oh wait-her? That's Satsuki. I got to know her a little bit over the summer." At the mention of her name, Shippo's tail began to bounce.

"Do you like her?" Taro questioned.

"Me? No, 'course not." His tail continued bobbing.

Taro decided to drop the subject and took another stab at inquiry. "What's the glittering thing she's wearing?"

Shippo squinted in Satsuki's direction. "It's a piece of quartz her brother had given her. He used to be an archaeologist and he would always bring home some kind of jewel or shiny rock as a gift for her."

"Her brother…..what about her parents?"

"I don't think she has any. If she does, she's never mentioned them to me."

Taro looked over at Satsuki, the stone flower glistening off the sun's rays. Hearing about Shippo and Satsuki, Taro could not be more grateful that he still had his parents. In fact, he couldn't help but feel a little selfish, knowing that Shippo and Satsuki would never experience the happiness and joy Taro felt when around Kagome and Inuyasha.

Suddenly, a loud ringing sounded through the yard, and children stood up with their bags and headed towards the entrance of the school.

Taro and Shippo followed suite, and soon they were following the throng of students towards the doors. It wasn't too long before a violet eyed kid found his way to Taro and Shippo.

"Hay, I finally found you. I saw your Mom and Dad leave but I couldn't find you. Where were you?" He then noticed the fox demon staring at him with wide eyes. "Who's this guy?" Shisai questioned.

"This is Shippo. He's the guy I was talking with while you were looking for me. Shippo, this is Shisai."

Shippo shook hands with Shisai, still staring at him. Then he was off, like a bat out of hell. "Hi, I'm Shippo. Wait you already knew that. Do you know I'm a demon? Guess my tail gives it away. Did you know I'm a fox demon? Bet you didn't. Then again, you probably did, 'cause I've got red hair and foxes have red fur. I like your eyes. Is that a natural color? Or are they colored contacts? Why is your hair in a ponytail? Ponytails are for girls. Wait, I have a ponytail. But I'm not a girl! Do you think I'm a girl? Please say-"

Taro clamped a hand over Shippo's flapping lips. "He likes to talk a lot."

"No, really?" Shisai said sarcastically. "But to answer your questions, I knew you were a demon, but not a fox demon. I have my Dad's eyes, so this is my natural eye color. I wear my hair in a ponytail because it's too long and gets in the way, and no, I don't think you're a girl."

"Koof!" Shippo said against Taro's palm.

As the three entered the building, a woman stood at the end of the hallway. "All students, report to the auditorium for the Welcome Back ceremony," the lady addressed. She had long black hair that was tied up with a white ribbon. It seemed to glow with a sapphire beauty. Upon seeing this woman from a distance, something clunked into place in taro's mind.

"Mommy!" he cried as he shot towards the woman before Shisai had a chance to stop him. He lunged towards her and clung to her leg, the entire student body staring at the scene in amazement.

Taro smiled up at the woman, happiness flooding through his body……but it dispersed immediately upon seeing the expression on the woman's face; an expression that Kagome would never wear in a lifetime.

"Your Mommy is not here, and you will not be seeing her for another six hours and thirty minutes. So I suggest you hold your tongue for that amount of time and stop accusing single women of being your birth mother." Even though he hadn't understood half of what she said, Taro knew this woman was pissed at him. The cold glare and frigid tone were big hints. He gulped.

The woman peeled Taro from her leg, wrinkling her nose as if he was some squished insect that got stuck to the sole of her shoe, and pushed him back into the crowd of kids. "But just to make sure you don't mistake me for your…..mommy," she said the name as if it was something sour, "you will call me Miss Kikyo." She stalked off, her polished heels clicking across the waxed tiles.

There was a moment's pause, as all the students registered what had occurred, before turning abruptly to the left and walking towards the auditorium. Shisai and Shippo pushed a dumbfounded Taro through the doors and headed down the many aisles to find a seat.

"Ok, mind explaining what was going on back there?" Shippo asked, once they had selected their seats and were sitting comfortably.

"I don't really know. I knew Mommy had left with Daddy so there was no way that lady could've been Mommy, but…..she just looked so much like her! And from that distance, it was easy for me to make that mistake," Taro said. However, after rethinking the situation, he knew he could've saved himself from the humiliation if he hadn't jumped to conclusions so hastily. Taro slid further into the seat, attempting to hide his burning cheeks.

"Don't worry about it. What's past is past, so let go of it," Shisai comforted.

Shippo was glaring at his armrest, obviously in deep thought. "Do you think Miss Kikyo is your Mom's doubleraper?"

What?" Both Shisai and Taro asked (Taro not knowing what it means…).

"Well, there's that theory that says there is two of every person. One is the nice, normal person, always happy and carefree, and the other is the psychotically evil clone that wants to make everybody miserable. Since Miss Kikyo looks like your Mom, and she seems pretty mean, maybe she's your Mom's doubleraper."

"Don't you mean doppelganger?" Shisai corrected.

"Yeah, doppelganger," Shippo concluded.

The noise level in the room dummed down as a figure headed on stage towards the podium. He was very short, only a head taller than Shippo. He was a balding man with a long nose and a gray mustache. Taro giggled, along with some of the other students, as the short man climbed the stepladder to reach the microphone. He cleared his throat, and spoke.

"Hello students, and welcome to the beginning of what will hopefully be a good year. To those who don't know me, I am Mr. Myoga, the principal of this school." His voice matched his look completely.

He cleared his throat, again, and continued his speech. "Just a few reminders and statements. All students will have their lunchtime on the park benches, while the cafeteria is being rebuilt. For those who don't know where that is, we have certain teachers who will escort you to it."

"Now, I am happy to introduce a new teacher to our school. I have spoken with her, and know she will do a good job. Please give a warm welcome to our teacher, Miss Kikyo."

On cue, high heels could be heard from the side of the stage, and Kikyo walked towards the podium. Taro shuddered, partly from the cold aura she gave off. As she and Myoga shook hands and he stepped out of her, Taro surprised himself, totally sure Myoga's hand would have stuck to Kikyo's palm in her ice like grip.

"Good morning students. I am happy to introduce myself, as Kikyo Miko, and ecstatic to be your teacher this year."

If this is ecstatic, I wonder what depressed is, Taro thought.

He didn't exactly know how the rest of the speech went, because he and Shippo began entertaining themselves by picking the fuzz off the decaying armrest…..and seeing how many pieces the could stick in their mouths

Shisai shook his head at their stupidity. "You're going to get sick."

"Fo be wun't," they both said, their mouths full of cotton.

The sound of applause was the signal of the ending of Kikyo's speech, and Shisai looked away in disgust as the two demons hacked up the fuzz.

Mr. Myoga took the stand once again. "Thank you, Miss Kikyo. I hope you will have a splendid time this year." He paused, cleared his throat for the third time, and continued. "I will announce the students this year. When I call your designated grade, please follow the assigned escort to the classroom. Let's begin."

He pulled out a long list and began reading. "All students entering first grade, please follow Mr. Miyagi to the classroom." A fair number of students rose from their seats and followed the tall man out of the auditorium.

"Students entering second grade, please follow Mr. Yoshikawa to your classroom."

Taro and Shippo stood up, bid farewell to Shisai (who was entering fourth grade) and followed the other second graders towards the exit. Once out in the hallway, Shippo nudged Taro excitedly, pointing at something in front of them. "It's her! It's her!"

"Who?"

"Satsuki! She's in our class!"

Sure enough, Satsuki was walking along in front of them, her bushy ponytail bobbing with every step she took.

After a few minutes of endless walking and turning, they finally arrived outside of a wooden door. "Grade 2, Room 815. Your teacher will be here shortly. Until then, pick a desk and sit down quietly," Mr. Yoshikawa instructed. As he walked away, the students ran into the room, Shippo trying to "innocently" get a desk next to Satsuki.

Taro sat down in a desk next to Shippo, thinking about the choices of teachers, staring unfocused at the desk in front of him. It wasn't until the noise level of the classroom gradually became louder and taro was shaken from his thoughts. Curiously, he took in the scene around him-and spotted something that made his blood run cold. He didn't need to look to know a woman with black tied hair tied in a ribbon walked into the classroom, nor did he need to hear the way she clacked across the floor in her high heels, for Taro had already known who this person would be from the moment he glanced at the teacher's desk, and spotted the nameplate, where, in gold lettering, the letters spelled out "Miss Kikyo", and Taro knew then who their teacher was.

A/N Taa daa! Finished chapter 2! I promise I will post chapter 3 up sooner than this one. Well, please please please review! I could really use some of those right now…….Until next time!