Chapter 7 was inspired by Bejipan~ ^-^ Thank you for the idea!
Disclaimer:: ::ignores lawyers:: Dance all day~ Dance all night~ V^0^V
____________________________
Inuki
Chapter Seven :: Shopping
Kagome set down her pencil and relaxed her neck, stretching a bit as she did. There was a stick of plumeria incense lit, giving her fresh, clean room a sweet scent to it. She'd gotten home that evening and gone through a spring cleaning mood before starting her studies, and so her once spotless room was now covered with books and papers.
She hadn't even left her room, to eat or anything, which was odd, considering she'd been at it for a couple of hours and by the second hour Inuki or Souta had dragged her downstairs to do something fun. But then, it was Thursday, so Souta was downstairs watching his favorite program and Inuki was at work. No distractions. The perfect time to study.
The smell of dinner cooking downstairs stirred Kagome from her studies. She looked towards the door, then at her books, and her stomach gave a rumble of protest as she turned back towards the books.
Shrugging, she stood and headed downstairs. In the living room, Souta sat tuned in to the virtual world, every so often managing to get his fork up to his mouth. Kagome kept towards the kitchen, where Jiichan was reading the paper at the table and Mama stood at the stove, fixing Jiichan and herself a plate.
Kagome made her own plate and ate quickly, wanting to get back to her room and get in as much studying as she could before bedtime. After she finished, Kagome stretched, thanked her mother and started back towards her books, until Mama called, "Kagome-chan?"
The teen deadpanned. *Hardly out of the kitchen. I knew she had something for me to do, she couldn't help herself.* She turned back and said sweetly, "Yes ma'am?" After a moment, Mama turned to her and Kagome blinked in confusion at the obento box was presented to her.
Kagome looked at the carefully wrapped box and then at Mama. She smiled. "I ate already, Mama."
"This is Inuki-kun's. I want you to go take it to him!" Mama smirked proudly.
Kagome frowned. "Mama, he's at work! He can stop by Wacdonald's or something on the way home and get his own dinner."
Mama waggled her finger in her daughter's face. "Tsk tsk Kagome-chan. Allowing Inuki-kun to just eat take-out every night!! He deserves a home-cooked meal and you will take this to him!!"
Kagome sighed in defeat and practically snatched the box from her mother. *She hates me...*
~*~
"Here you go, your change is $11.54; have a good evening."
Inuki handed the bag of movies to the customer along with the change and turned back to the job at hand. He was checking returned videos to make sure all the tapes were in the right boxes and so on, when the familiar scent of honey and plumeria wafted under his sensitive nose.
He felt that flutter of security that he always got when he smelled her. And strangely, hunger. Kagome brought with her the distinct smell of rice, veggies and fish in soy. He raised an eyebrow before turning to see her.
She was standing in from of him, holding a box out to him. It surprised him enough to see her there; holding a box out at him even. He blinked as she smiled at him. "Here you go," she said, and Inuki reached out to take the box.
"What is this...?" he wondered, and Kagome shrugged. "Dinner. Mama wanted to make sure you ate."
Inuki smiled faintly. "I could've walked down to the Wacdonalds and bought dinner... she didn't have to do this."
"She wanted you to have a home cooked meal." Inuki looked surprised again, and then softened. "I'll have to tell her thanks when we get home."
Kagome looked irked. Something about the way he said that... "What's 'we' supposed to mean?" she demanded, "I'm going home now, buddy, I'm not waiting around for two more hours to walk home with you." The boy laughed as he typed something into the computer. "What I mean is that I'm getting off early!"
Kagome's mouth hung open. "You mean I walked down here for nothing?" He grinned, mocking her. "Not for nothing, my honey. Thanks for the dinner!" She punched his shoulder as he slipped on his windbreaker and turned to the other worker behind the counter. "See you Sunday, Takeo."
He followed Kagome out of the video rental store and stretched as he breathed in the cool night air. "It feels good to be outta there early." Kagome nodded. "I guess so. I don't 'work' work, you know..."
"Nah, you're an even better person than me, Higurashi. I'm actually asking for payment for my work. You're a volunteer. That's a good thing to be," what was he tried to say. It came out, "Hmph, pretty much. You're like a little hospital slave. Work your ass off for nothing."
Kagome didn't seem to mind the comment; she rolled her eyes and kept walking, Inuki sauntering behind and mentally thunking himself in the head.
As they travelled the downtown shops, Inuki watched Kagome closely. Her birthday was in three days and he wanted to get her something. Problem was, he had no idea what he could get her; even after living with her for a month he wasn't sure was she liked.
So he kept an eye on her for anything that made her eyes light up or made her squeal with delight. It happened outside the toy store, of all places. *And she's supposed to be how old again? 16? Uh-huh,* he thought to himself.
"Kawaii~!!!!!" she squealed, placing both hands up against the glass, and Inuki walked over from a perfume stand. He peered in at what she was looking at and instantly winced inside.
It was a stuffed animal. Your basic plush creature, but it was the creature itself that made him gag. A fox.
It was cute, your basic stuffed fox. Bright brown-red faux fur, black tipped tail and ears, and it was wearing a night-sky printed bandanna, complete with stars, the moon and little bunnies making rice balls. Cute.
He hated it.
He had never much liked foxes much. He didn't know why. He thought they were annoying, always twitching their little noses and waving their furry tails and playing tricks on people and stealing his ramen--
His eyes snapped wide open. *What?!*
A little boy, about 4 or 5, with auburn hair and freckles. A kitsune tail twitched behind him as he laughed and jumped up into Kagome's arms. She was wearing the green school uniform again. He could see them in his head. The vision appeared in the same manner as the one that had happened on his birthday, and disappeared as quickly. Inuki stopped short, irked. Kagome looked at him. "Yashagawa-kun?"
He didn't respond right away, and she poked him in the shoulder. "Hey!"
At that he snapped back to reality. "Huh? Oh, sorry."
Kagome narrowed her eyes. Inuki smiled, waving his hand dismissively. "It's nothing, it's nothing. I'm fine."
Kagome raised her eyebrows. "You've done this before." Inuki shrank back a bit, embarrassed. "Uhm... done what, exactly?"
"You just go off in your own little world sometimes. You stand there looking like a drone, eyes as big as dinner plates, and I can snap my fingers in front of your face as much as I want and you won't blink until you want to. What is it you're seeing?" He shrugged. "Nothing! It doesn't make any sense, it's not a problem. Don't worry about it. Do you like the fox?"
Kagome blinked a couple of times, surprised at how quickly he'd switched subjects, and nodded. "Y-yeah... I do."
He nodded once and walked past her, into the store. A few minutes later he came back out, the fox in hand. Kagome squealed at it, hugging it like a little girl with a cherished doll. She looked up at him. "Thank you!! What is this for?"
"Early birthday present," he replied, and Kagome looked up at him in awe. Then her face scrunched up into a little pout. "But.. I didn't get you anything for your birthday."
Inuki laughed at her, and then lifted his left arm. Around his wrist the gold bracelet hung, glinting in the streetlights. "You got this for me, didn't you?"
Kagome blinked at him before giggling, turning her face down in a shy little girl's grin. She held the fox-toy close to her breast, smiling. "Thanks. I'm going to name him--"
"Shippou."
Kagome's head snapped up and she stared at Inuki. He was doing it again; the distant, faraway look that told her he wasn't really right next to her. He was somewhere else, somewhere, she hoped, that was 500 years in the past. She pursed her lips in wonder. *I wonder if he's remembering...? Remembering his life as Inuyasha?* After a moment she shook her head. *Not good to get my hopes up.*
She nodded with a smile. "Shippou sounds nice."
~*~ To be continued ~*~
a/n :: Wheee!!! This story reminds me of cotton candy; it's fluffy and can give you cavities. (is that bad, maybe? ::shudder::) Anyway~! Thank you, Bejipan for the idea (I liked it, was cutie) And anyone else who has an idea, send them in, I'll see what I can do! ^_~V
Please review! Next chapter will be up soon~
~*~ V^-^V ~*~
~Tessen
Disclaimer:: ::ignores lawyers:: Dance all day~ Dance all night~ V^0^V
____________________________
Inuki
Chapter Seven :: Shopping
Kagome set down her pencil and relaxed her neck, stretching a bit as she did. There was a stick of plumeria incense lit, giving her fresh, clean room a sweet scent to it. She'd gotten home that evening and gone through a spring cleaning mood before starting her studies, and so her once spotless room was now covered with books and papers.
She hadn't even left her room, to eat or anything, which was odd, considering she'd been at it for a couple of hours and by the second hour Inuki or Souta had dragged her downstairs to do something fun. But then, it was Thursday, so Souta was downstairs watching his favorite program and Inuki was at work. No distractions. The perfect time to study.
The smell of dinner cooking downstairs stirred Kagome from her studies. She looked towards the door, then at her books, and her stomach gave a rumble of protest as she turned back towards the books.
Shrugging, she stood and headed downstairs. In the living room, Souta sat tuned in to the virtual world, every so often managing to get his fork up to his mouth. Kagome kept towards the kitchen, where Jiichan was reading the paper at the table and Mama stood at the stove, fixing Jiichan and herself a plate.
Kagome made her own plate and ate quickly, wanting to get back to her room and get in as much studying as she could before bedtime. After she finished, Kagome stretched, thanked her mother and started back towards her books, until Mama called, "Kagome-chan?"
The teen deadpanned. *Hardly out of the kitchen. I knew she had something for me to do, she couldn't help herself.* She turned back and said sweetly, "Yes ma'am?" After a moment, Mama turned to her and Kagome blinked in confusion at the obento box was presented to her.
Kagome looked at the carefully wrapped box and then at Mama. She smiled. "I ate already, Mama."
"This is Inuki-kun's. I want you to go take it to him!" Mama smirked proudly.
Kagome frowned. "Mama, he's at work! He can stop by Wacdonald's or something on the way home and get his own dinner."
Mama waggled her finger in her daughter's face. "Tsk tsk Kagome-chan. Allowing Inuki-kun to just eat take-out every night!! He deserves a home-cooked meal and you will take this to him!!"
Kagome sighed in defeat and practically snatched the box from her mother. *She hates me...*
~*~
"Here you go, your change is $11.54; have a good evening."
Inuki handed the bag of movies to the customer along with the change and turned back to the job at hand. He was checking returned videos to make sure all the tapes were in the right boxes and so on, when the familiar scent of honey and plumeria wafted under his sensitive nose.
He felt that flutter of security that he always got when he smelled her. And strangely, hunger. Kagome brought with her the distinct smell of rice, veggies and fish in soy. He raised an eyebrow before turning to see her.
She was standing in from of him, holding a box out to him. It surprised him enough to see her there; holding a box out at him even. He blinked as she smiled at him. "Here you go," she said, and Inuki reached out to take the box.
"What is this...?" he wondered, and Kagome shrugged. "Dinner. Mama wanted to make sure you ate."
Inuki smiled faintly. "I could've walked down to the Wacdonalds and bought dinner... she didn't have to do this."
"She wanted you to have a home cooked meal." Inuki looked surprised again, and then softened. "I'll have to tell her thanks when we get home."
Kagome looked irked. Something about the way he said that... "What's 'we' supposed to mean?" she demanded, "I'm going home now, buddy, I'm not waiting around for two more hours to walk home with you." The boy laughed as he typed something into the computer. "What I mean is that I'm getting off early!"
Kagome's mouth hung open. "You mean I walked down here for nothing?" He grinned, mocking her. "Not for nothing, my honey. Thanks for the dinner!" She punched his shoulder as he slipped on his windbreaker and turned to the other worker behind the counter. "See you Sunday, Takeo."
He followed Kagome out of the video rental store and stretched as he breathed in the cool night air. "It feels good to be outta there early." Kagome nodded. "I guess so. I don't 'work' work, you know..."
"Nah, you're an even better person than me, Higurashi. I'm actually asking for payment for my work. You're a volunteer. That's a good thing to be," what was he tried to say. It came out, "Hmph, pretty much. You're like a little hospital slave. Work your ass off for nothing."
Kagome didn't seem to mind the comment; she rolled her eyes and kept walking, Inuki sauntering behind and mentally thunking himself in the head.
As they travelled the downtown shops, Inuki watched Kagome closely. Her birthday was in three days and he wanted to get her something. Problem was, he had no idea what he could get her; even after living with her for a month he wasn't sure was she liked.
So he kept an eye on her for anything that made her eyes light up or made her squeal with delight. It happened outside the toy store, of all places. *And she's supposed to be how old again? 16? Uh-huh,* he thought to himself.
"Kawaii~!!!!!" she squealed, placing both hands up against the glass, and Inuki walked over from a perfume stand. He peered in at what she was looking at and instantly winced inside.
It was a stuffed animal. Your basic plush creature, but it was the creature itself that made him gag. A fox.
It was cute, your basic stuffed fox. Bright brown-red faux fur, black tipped tail and ears, and it was wearing a night-sky printed bandanna, complete with stars, the moon and little bunnies making rice balls. Cute.
He hated it.
He had never much liked foxes much. He didn't know why. He thought they were annoying, always twitching their little noses and waving their furry tails and playing tricks on people and stealing his ramen--
His eyes snapped wide open. *What?!*
A little boy, about 4 or 5, with auburn hair and freckles. A kitsune tail twitched behind him as he laughed and jumped up into Kagome's arms. She was wearing the green school uniform again. He could see them in his head. The vision appeared in the same manner as the one that had happened on his birthday, and disappeared as quickly. Inuki stopped short, irked. Kagome looked at him. "Yashagawa-kun?"
He didn't respond right away, and she poked him in the shoulder. "Hey!"
At that he snapped back to reality. "Huh? Oh, sorry."
Kagome narrowed her eyes. Inuki smiled, waving his hand dismissively. "It's nothing, it's nothing. I'm fine."
Kagome raised her eyebrows. "You've done this before." Inuki shrank back a bit, embarrassed. "Uhm... done what, exactly?"
"You just go off in your own little world sometimes. You stand there looking like a drone, eyes as big as dinner plates, and I can snap my fingers in front of your face as much as I want and you won't blink until you want to. What is it you're seeing?" He shrugged. "Nothing! It doesn't make any sense, it's not a problem. Don't worry about it. Do you like the fox?"
Kagome blinked a couple of times, surprised at how quickly he'd switched subjects, and nodded. "Y-yeah... I do."
He nodded once and walked past her, into the store. A few minutes later he came back out, the fox in hand. Kagome squealed at it, hugging it like a little girl with a cherished doll. She looked up at him. "Thank you!! What is this for?"
"Early birthday present," he replied, and Kagome looked up at him in awe. Then her face scrunched up into a little pout. "But.. I didn't get you anything for your birthday."
Inuki laughed at her, and then lifted his left arm. Around his wrist the gold bracelet hung, glinting in the streetlights. "You got this for me, didn't you?"
Kagome blinked at him before giggling, turning her face down in a shy little girl's grin. She held the fox-toy close to her breast, smiling. "Thanks. I'm going to name him--"
"Shippou."
Kagome's head snapped up and she stared at Inuki. He was doing it again; the distant, faraway look that told her he wasn't really right next to her. He was somewhere else, somewhere, she hoped, that was 500 years in the past. She pursed her lips in wonder. *I wonder if he's remembering...? Remembering his life as Inuyasha?* After a moment she shook her head. *Not good to get my hopes up.*
She nodded with a smile. "Shippou sounds nice."
~*~ To be continued ~*~
a/n :: Wheee!!! This story reminds me of cotton candy; it's fluffy and can give you cavities. (is that bad, maybe? ::shudder::) Anyway~! Thank you, Bejipan for the idea (I liked it, was cutie) And anyone else who has an idea, send them in, I'll see what I can do! ^_~V
Please review! Next chapter will be up soon~
~*~ V^-^V ~*~
~Tessen