Yeesh! Soory it's been so long! I just got over a nasty bout of strep throat, and being sick always kills my muse. Literally. I had to go bury him. I made him a little cross and everything in the backyard. But he's alive again, so things are better now. Anywho, this chapter ended up being longer than I planned, but hey, you guys don't mind that, do you? Hehe, enjoy.

Time's Mortal Enemy: Thankee thankee for the kind words. I do in fact remember Kohaku; however, he does not show up for another couple chapters. Sadly, he will not be having a huge roll in this fic, but he will have a few bits. His big thing is in the ending of the trilogy. (Yes, this is gonna be a trilogy.)

            And I did put Inu and Kag in the drops they were at the very beginning. The man with silver hair and the girl in the green pleated skirt. Sorry if I wasn't specific enough. I thought I was… oh well, it's already posted.

            Jessica: Thank you so much for all the happiness you have piled upon me. You almost make the strep-throat go away! Don't worry, I'm gonna keep on taking things at my own pace. I was just warning people that I'm trying to keep my characters rich, and realistic, and that takes a little time. I need to weave them together in a realistic way, and that'll take a little doing. I don't think this fic is going to necessarily be slow, but very jumping around. I have lots of characters, in lots of different places, trying to address them in chronological order. So, the likelihood of the same characters being addressed in two chapters in a row in the beginning is unlikely. But please, bear with me. I've got it all worked out, and it all works. Thanks a bunch!

            Shadow of Reality: Whoa! Thank you so much! That's the first time anyone's ever asked me that online, and I take it as a full compliment! Before I tell you my reasons for writing fan fiction, I would like to make something clear: I do write original stuff. I do quite a bit. However, non of it is online. Part of the reason non of it is online is that I, personally, do not think that I am skilled enough. I know many out there would differ, but when I start posting my original stuff, I want to be real, real, top quality! At the top of my game. The other part, is that I'm committed to this story right now, and it wouldn't feel right to me to just abandon it. NO matter what my skill is right now, if I had just started doing original stuff, I would have been crushed. However, thanks to fan fiction, I managed to start pretty well, with the help of some vastly superior writers (Saro, Saro, and… Saro) and get lots of good tips. However, I couldn't just leave this story hanging. I've gotta finish it!

            Now, three reasons I write fan fiction:

1. I really enjoy it. I'm sorry, but writing fan fiction is just plain fun. I have had so much fun writing over this past year or so that I doubt I could ever stop. Even if I become a published author (Which I hope to do someday) I will still, probably write fan fiction.

2. To build skill. I know, you already think I'm skilled enough, but I don't. As for why fan fiction? Well, I have plenty of practice writing original stuff, but fan fiction makes you work on a few other things. For instance, it makes you work on keeping people in character. I do, in fact, have great amounts of trouble with this, even with my original characters. I personally hated the way I wrote Atma at the end of Two Weeks. She wasn't how I wanted her to be at all. She was way to… good. I wanted her to be nice… but still kind of evil, if you know what I mean.

3. And lastly, I wanted to try out some Ideas I've had for original stuff, to see what people thought of them, in the context of a real story. For instance, all of Vadise's dialogue in 'ripples' was something I was planning to use elsewhere. However, I thought it might be too over-dramatic and sappy. You've quelled my fears on that, tough. Also, I try out characters. All my original characters are loosely based on people I want to use in my original stuff. However, I want all their kinks to be worked out before I get there, so I use them here, so when I use the characters that they are based on, then I can have those characters down pat.

Also, no self respecting publishing company is going to publish something by a junior in high school.

            Orion: Thank you very much for the kind words! I tried to make the last chapter slightly poetic. It worked well with the philosophy.

Any who, I've yakked for more than a page, so here's the good stuff!

*****

            . InuYasha was warm. This was very odd, because InuYasha could count on one hand the number of times in his life that he had been warm. He had been hot before. He had been cold, he had been freezing, he had been burning, but warm was something totally different. Warm wasn't just a temperature, it was a state of being. It was waking up on a cold winters morning, with three quilts, and being in that lovely fog when you didn't think about what happened yesterday, or what you had to do today, but you simply sat, not thinking of anything, but rolled in that gray area between sleep and awake for what seemed like hours

            As the hanyou slowly faded from warmth to awake, his nose became awake. He was lying in Kagome's room. The scent of Kagome was all around him, permeating every surface. It was spicy, with a slight hint of flowers, and everything else that was nice in the world. InuYasha wished that she wouldn't try to disguise her scent with all those shampoos and soaps and stuff. They blocked out her scent. It was heavy and sweet, like a thick honey, spilling through the air.

            His amber eyes slowly opened, and he looked down. He was lying on the floor of Kagome's room. He could remember stubbornly refusing to sleep anywhere else, despite Grandpa's screaming curses and scrolls. Kagome hadn't been in much of a mood to resist.

            The thick blanket that normally adorned Kagome's bed was draped across his shoulders. That hadn't been last night. Kagome must've gotten up already, and lent it to him. He pulled it to his face, inhaling slightly, and smiled.

            There was a laugh from the door, and InuYasha turned suddenly, his face caught in a gape between outrage and panic. Souta stood in the doorway, his pajamas still on. His was stifling laughter. "Kagome told me to wake you up for breakfast." He said between chuckles. "But if you want, I could give you five minutes."

            InuYasha's expression quickly settled to a dark, cloudy, threatening scowl.

*****

            Kagome sighed. She was tired, and a little annoyed. Breakfast had gone well, she supposed, but it wasn't the magical thing she had wanted. She had imagined a wonderful little scene, where she worked all morning to make breakfast and InuYasha came down, and everyone sat down together, and enjoyed, and at the end everyone would say: "Thank you Kagome!"

            She looked down at the sink of dirty dishes in front of her. She must have been on crack. Souta had naturally ignored the pancakes, and sausage, and even the eggs, and gone for some coco puffs. Grandpa had had a nice helping of pills, and a single half of a small pancake. Her mother had been nice, and even helped her clear the table. And InuYasha… Her eyebrows furrowed, and her hand clenched under the soapy water. "Baka…" She muttered under her breath, stealing a glance at him. He had eaten almost everything, demanded some ramen, and then fallen a sleep in his chair. She scrubbed a plate, nursing her foul mood. She had waken up early to make breakfast, too.

            She finished the plates and moved on the cups. She finished the first, and held it up to the light, looking for spots. A clawed hand reached out from the edges of her vision, and grasped the cup firmly. "Stupid humans." InuYasha's voice whispered, just behind her.

            Kagome gasped, and blushed slightly, letting the glass be taken out of her grasp.

            "Always working on such stupid stuff."

            Kagome turned around suddenly, backing up against the counter. "InuYasha." She said, reaching for the glass.

            The hanyou stood lazily just in front of her, looking at the glass. "Looks clean to me." He grumbled. "Why do you always work on this crap?"

            Kagome crossed her arms. "Because people in this time actually like to have clean stuff." She said severely. "Maybe you should learn something from it?"

            InuYasha stared at her a moment, then sighed. "Well, I suppose the eggs weren't half bad, so c'mere." He said, holding the glass away, and approaching the sink.

            Kagome watched it wonder as his hands descended into the dirty, soapy water, and pull out a rag. As he began buffing the glass, he glanced at her. "So, you gonna help, or what."

            Kagome blinked, and nodded. She stood up by his side, drying some of the plates that had been already washed. They washed in silence, and slowly, a slight tug pulled at the corner of Kagome's mind. "So…" She started, voicing the thought. "Did you… y'know… find them?"

            InuYasha didn't look at her. He stared strait forward out the window, out to the huge tree rising out of the courtyard. "No." He said finally. "Didn't find anything. I found the fire-pit of the camp that we separated from, but other than that, all signs just disappeared."

            Kagome thought for a moment. "You don't suppose they ended up in…" She left it hanging, not wanting to mention the demon city.

            "I checked in Shinjuku." He said, and snorted slightly. "Or at least tried." He lifted a glass out of the water, and started another. His hand was tense, and his eyes narrow.

            Kagome stopped drying, and stared at him. She leaned forward, and looked up at his face. "Something wrong."

            InuYasha sniffed. "Sesshoumaru's taken over Shinjuku." He said, his voice gravely and angry. "He's even taken the official title, 'Overlord of the West.'" He spat into the dishwater. "Like hell he is. That was my old man. Sesshoumaru couldn't fill his shoes."

            Kagome frowned, and started another plate. The washed a few more dished in silence, before InuYasha spoke again. "I dunno why he was so helpful through the search for Vadise, but he's back to normal." He spat again. "He's got a bounty out on my head, so I didn't stay in Shinjuku any longer than possible."

            "I thought you said they weren't in Shinjuku." She said, softly. "How did you manage to find out?"

            InuYasha shrugged. "I asked." He said. "You remember that Aaron guy?" He asked. "I managed to find him. He said there were no new slaves, or any kitsune around." The hanyou shrugged. "He said he'd keep an eye open, though."

            "But wouldn't he cheat you to Sesshoumaru?" Kagome asked. "I know that he's a good fighter, but Sesshoumaru is… well… Sesshoumaru."

            InuYasha shook his head. "He might." He said. "But I really don't care. The bounty hunters are gonna find me anyway, so I might as well get it out of the way faster."

            Kagome grimaced, and scrubbed the cup she was working on harder. "So… there are youkai bounty hunters?"

            InuYasha nodded. "Lots of crap like that. '"All of it'll be small fry until people realize that I'm no pushover." His eyes narrowed. "It's after all the stupid ones are gone that things get tricky."

            Kagome smiled fondly at him, and punched him lightly on the shoulder. "Hey, you took on Atma!" She said. "I know you can take any bounty hunter that comes your way."

            InuYasha looked at her, and his lips turned up in his trademarked, cocky grin. "Yeah, well she still better hope we don't meet again."

            Kagome snorted. "Yeah, sure." She said, stacking the last of the plates. "You're really scary."

            InuYasha flung his hands out to dry them, then crossed his arms. "Yer bein' sarcastic."

            Kagome perked an eyebrow. "Right." She said, her voice dripping with cynicism.

            InuYasha chuckled softly.

            Right next to him, the telephone rang with no warning.

            Kagome burst out laughing as the surprise sent InuYasha hurtling into the roof, and walked over to the phone. "Hello?" She asked.

            "Kagome!" Eri's voice rang out. "We're all at the mall! There's this hot new little skirt in the Penny's, and I need your opinion on it."

            InuYasha returned to the floor, and inspected the phone carefully. "What is it? He asked, poking at the earpiece.

            "InuYasha, I'm talking." Kagome hissed, taking the phone away from her mouth.

            "Talking to who?" He demanded.

            "Just be quiet!" She hissed again, and turned to the phone again. "Sorry."

            "Who was that?" Eri asked. "Is it… him?"

            Kagome froze, and looked at InuYasha. His ears pricked. "Is who him?" He demanded.

            "Ummm…" She said into the phone. "Tapped line."

            "Really?" Eri demanded. "They're really taking that security think seriously."

            "Tapped line!" Kagome said again.

            InuYasha growled. "What the hell is a Tapped line? And what security thing?"

            Kagome waved a hand at him. "Can't talk right now." She said quickly to the phone. "What was that about the mall?"

            "You have to come down and see this dress. It's so cute!" Eri's voice rang, all thought to the supposed 'secret agent' in her kitchen forgotten. "Hurry on down."

            "But…" Kagome objected, glancing at InuYasha again. She had wanted to spend time with him today.

            "No 'buts.'" Eri commanded. "C'mon! We need you!" There was a quick conversation with someone one the other end, and Eri came back on the line. "Kagome, Yuka just found the cutest little blouse! This is vital, Kagome! We need you!" She sounded desperate.

            Kagome rolled her eyes. "Hold on a second." She said, and turned to InuYasha, who was still regarding the phone with suspicion. "Listen, my friends want to see me down at the mall."

            "What's a mall."

            Kagome blinked, not sure how to answer that. "It's… umm… the mall."  She tried. "Will you be okay alone for a while, if I go?"

            InuYasha stared at her, and shrugged. "Feh! I suppose that you just wanna go take some of those tests that you love so much." He smiled at her. "Go on, get outta here!"

            Kagome smiled at him, and nodded. "Thanks." She said, and dashed up the stairs on the side of the kitchen.

            InuYasha smirked, and lounged back down on a chair in the kitchen. He was glad that Kagome had such confidence in him. If only it was that simple. The bounty hunters were not gonna be as easy as she thought. He had already run into one. He had been young and unprofessional. But still, he had been a tough little brat. InuYasha shuddered to think about what would happen when the real hunters started showing up.

            He glanced at the long, beaten scabbard at his side, and sighed.

            Kagome dashed down the stairs again, sporting a nice skirt and a pretty blouse. A purse was slung over her shoulder. "Okay, InuYasha, I'm off."

            InuYasha was lounging in the chair, and waved a hand as she dashed by. "Feh." He called after her.      

            He closed his eyes again, and leaned back in the chair, thinking.

            There was some rummaging in the kitchen, and his nose identified it as Kagome's mother. "Hey, mom." He said. He had taken to calling Mrs. Higurashi 'mom.' It worked a lot better than anything else.

            "Yes, InuYasha?" Mrs. Higurashi asked, pouring herself a cup of coffee.

            "I've been thinking. I'm looking for a place I might be able to do something…"

            "Something hmmm?" Mrs. Higurashi asked, sipping her coffee, and sitting down at the table across from the hanyou.

            "Do you know where I could find…"

*****

            Kagome struggled to keep in her yawns. Eri and Yuka were really going today…

            "Isn't it just the cutest?" Yuka demanded, modeling the little blouse. Kagome couldn't help but notice that it looked just like their school uniforms, only blue.

            "It's beautiful." She said, hoping that her friend wouldn't notice the flat tone in her voice. "Buy it."

            Ayame stood next to her, also bored out of her wits. "It's good, it fits, it's affordable. Let's go." She said.

            "Oh, my gosh, Yuka! Look at this!" Eri's voice rang out from behind a rack of clothes. Yuka's eyes widened, and she quickly dashed over to the rack. Another school uniform look alike, this one black.

            "Oh, my gosh! Kagome! Look at this!"

            Kagome rolled her eyes, and looked pleadingly at Ayame.

            Ayame shrugged. "I need to go to the bathroom." She said quickly, and began backing up slowly.

            Kagome nodded quickly, "Me too." She said, quickly. They made a quick retreat from the expert clothes hunters edging towards them.

*****

            "I feel like a retard." InuYasha complained.

            "Hush." Mrs. Higurashi said, rummaging in a cupboard. "It's almost done."

            "Do I really have to wear this?"

            "Normal people don't wear clothes like yours in this time. You can't go around like that."

            InuYasha scowled. "I'm not normal, though."

            "Yes." Mrs. Higurashi said, pulling out a big, red bandanna. "But you want to look as normal as possible. You can pass the silver hair off as a rebel punk, but to do that you have to look the rest of the part."

            InuYasha crossed his arms, missing the familiar feel of his haori. "Yeah, well, why can't I just run?"

            "Because…" Mrs. Higurashi said. "People here aren't used to seeing youkai or hanyou. Bend down please."

            InuYasha kneeled, and shuddered as the bandanna wrapped around his head, flattening his ears.

            "Therefore," Mrs. Higurashi continued, tying the bandanna in a knot in the back. "You should not be flaunting it. Kagome might think that these times are perfect, but they can be dangerous too. You don't want to attract attention."

            "What kind of dangerous?" InuYasha demanded suspiciously.

            "Oh, not as dangerous as your times, of coarse, but there are bad men out there. Plus people with superhuman powers always attract government, and that would be too hard to explain."

            "Gover-men? What the hell izzat?"

            Mrs. Higurashi sighed. "Just follow my instructions. Don't talk to anyone unless you have to, head strait to the gym, and then head to the kendo area. Don't take out your sword, no matter what, only cross the streets when everyone else crosses, and don't kill anyone."

            InuYasha sighed, and looked into one of the shiny things Kagome called a mirror. InuYasha had to admit. He didn't look to bad, now that he had the entire look together. There were big, black things on his feet the Mrs. Higurashi called 'sneakers.' They weren't too bad. His feet were warm, and they had pretty good traction. He would still prefer bare feet, though. Then there were his pants. They were sort of like his hakama, only thicker and rougher. They were blue, and flared out towards the bottom, where the hung about the 'sneakers' in big folds. Mrs. Higurashi called them 'jeans.' The jeans were tied off with a black belt. His top couldn't have possibly been farther from his haori. It was sleeveless and red, and hugged his torso fairly tightly. It was raggedy, and looked like the sleeves had been ripped off. On top of his head was a red and white bandanna that covered the top of his head and his ears.

            "Well…" He said, still not liking the situation. "Fine. This gym place is only just down the big pavement street thingy, right."

            Mrs. Higurashi nodded. "Its a few blocks down. It's a big building, and says 'gym' on it. You can't miss it."

            InuYasha shrugged, and nodded his thanks. "I'll be back later today."

            Mrs. Higurashi nodded. "I'll have dinner ready."

            He nodded, and walked out the door, his arrogant swagger showing through the baggy jeans. Mrs. Higurashi smiled, and chuckled to herself. InuYasha was a good boy. He called her 'mom.'

            She had a very strong suspicion that this prophesy would come true some day.

*****

            Kagome and Ayame walked through the mall, each sipping a coke happily. Someone from school waved to Kagome and Kagome waved back with a smile. It had been so long since she had been able to just be a high school girl without worrying about dying every other second.

            "Hey, Kagome?" Ayame asked, somewhat sheepishly.

            Kagome looked at her friend, and nodded inquiringly, the straw from her coke occupying her mouth.

            "Umm… would you mind if we… stopped by…" She pointed.

            Kagome's gaze followed the finger, and she smiled. Ayame was pointing to the arcade. Kagome wasn't a videogame freak, but Ayame always enjoyed a quick game or two, and Kagome could deal with a few games herself. "Sure." She said happily, glad to go into a store with something besides clothes. "We've got a few minutes."

            Ayame smiled, and headed off towards the arcade. Kagome chuckled, and followed her. By the time she got into the neon-lit room, Ayame had already disappeared among the games. Kagome laughed and pulled out a few yen. She could afford one or two games. She approached the counter for token, and placed her yen on the table.

            The girl at the counter turned around, and told her to have a nice time playing.

            Kagome nodded, then stared harder at the girl. She looked young. Too young to be working in fact. And also to young to be wearing the outfit she was wearing. She was maybe just into her teens, and was wearing an incredibly short red skirt. Her halter top probably would have been red, but it required a micro-scope to see, so Kagome really couldn't tell. Her hair, matching the motif, was dyed a thick crimson, and her contacts stained her eyes the same shade. She looked oddly familiar.

            The girl seemed to be studying Kagome as well. Suddenly, her red eyes opened in surprise. "Kagome?" She asked. Her voice was girlish, but tried desperately to sound sensual, with only a modest level of success. "Izzat you?"

            Kagome blinked, and looked around. "Do I know you?"

            The girl smiled, and glanced around. Nobody was watching them. She held up a hand, and suddenly a flicker of flame ran through her fingers. "Oh, c'mon, if I can recognize you after five hundred years you should be able to recognize me after a month."

            Kagome blinked, then her eyes widened. Those weren't contacts, and her hair wasn't dyed. "Tiamet?" She asked.

            She girl grinned, revealing sharp fangs. "You bet." Said the red dragon. "In the scale."

*****

            InuYasha scowled, and looked up at the building. The big symbols "GYM" blared back at him. He shrugged, and walked into the building, taking only a moment to figure out how to use the door.

            Inside, he was hit full in the face with the smell of rancid sweat and exhaustion. He wrinkled his nose, and stepped in. To his left was a counter, with a man sitting at it. He looked shrimpy, and gangly.

            InuYasha stepped up to him, and scowled.

            The man, who was reading a magazine, put the paper down, and started at him, his eyes peaking with distaste over the thick rimmed glasses. They skimmed up and down his ragged appearance, then settled on his face. "Can I help you?" He asked.

            InuYasha quickly decided that he didn't like this man. "Where's the kendo room?" He demanded.

            Them man raised an eyebrow, and pointed down a long hall to the left. "Third door on the right." He said. "But there's someone in there right now. He doesn't like to be disturbed."

            InuYasha shrugged. "He'll deal with it." He said as he walked down the hall.

The man at the desk looked at InuYasha as he disappeared down the hall, then shrugged, and went back to the magazine.

*****

            "What are you doing here?" Kagome asked. "How are you here."

            Tiamet laughed, and pulled a prize plastic spider out from behind the counter. "I'm a dragon. We live long times. Honestly, you've slipped my mind for a while. Had I known that this was your time, I would have stopped by and said hi."

            "So…" Kagome said. "You've been alive all this time?" She asked.

            Tiamet nodded. "Oh, by the way, what's happened so far? I don't wanna spill the ending."

            Kagome blinked. "What."

            Tiamet smiled at her. "For you, all the adventures in the past are happening right now, in your life. For me, they're already over, and I know the ending. Tell me where you are in the story right now, so I don't give away anything."

            Kagome blinked in horror. "You know what happens?" She asked. "Do we get Naraku?"

            Tiamet shrugged. "Now, I can't tell you that." She said. "It would ruin all the fun." She thought for a moment. "Have you returned to the past after seeing Vadise?" She asked.

            Kagome thought for a moment, then shook her head. "InuYasha just got back from looking for Miroku and Sango."

            Tiamet's eyes brightened. "Oh, yeah!" She said. "Now I remember." She seemed to think about something for a moment. "Lesseee… what's about to happen…" She suddenly stopped, and grimaced. "Oh, yeah." She said unhappily.
            Kagome gasped, and leaned forward over the counter. "What's about to happen?"

            "Nothing." Tiamet said, just a bit too quickly. "Tokens?" She asked, holding some up. "I run the arcade you know. I was so happy when video-games came around."

            "What's going to happen."

            "I can't tell you." Tiamet said. "Celest told me never to tell you anything." She said. "Stop asking! Have tokens! Play games!" Her tone told Kagome that the conversation was over, but she had hit on something else on Kagome's mind. "Celest?" Kagome asked.

            Tiamet's eyes suddenly widened, and her hand slapped across her face. "You didn't hear that name from me." She said.

            Kagome's brow wrinkled. "But I already know Celest." She said. "She came to us the second we got back from getting me cured."

            One of Tiamet's eyes peaked form behind her hand. "You mean… you've met Celest already?"           

            Kagome nodded. "Was I not supposed to?"

            Tiamet's brow crinkled. "No… if you met Celest, you were supposed too." She mused, then shook her head. She quickly deposited a large amount of tokens in Kagome's hand. "Anywho, we've probably bent the space time continuum enough for one conversation." She said. "Go play some games, and forget anything I said." She shook her head. "And come back again after you go to the past again. I'll wanna talk to you then."

            Kagome blinked, and nodded. She should go find Ayame, anyway.

*****

InuYasha pushed his way into the room, and looked around. The room was padded, and thick, wooden swords stood on a rack on one of the walls. The floors were wood, and thick pads lined the walls. InuYasha scoffed. It looked like a training room for old farts.

"What are you doing here?" A voice demanded from his right.

            InuYasha turned. Well, maybe not old farts. The voice belonged to a middle aged man, maybe in his mid thirties. His hair was black, and ran back over his ears and stopped at his shoulders. He was solidly built, and a wooden boken was clutched loosely in his hand. He had a neatly trimmed beard and mustache, and he wore a white karate gi. InuYasha sneered. "Do I need an excuse to be here? I'm practicing." The hanyou turned and strode into the room, looking around. There were no targets to practice on though. How could a place like this be useful?

            There was a growl from behind him. "Listen, whelp. I have this room to myself every day, at this time. You can't just barge in here and expect to use it."

            InuYasha found himself not liking the old man. "Listen, pops!" He said angrily. "I need this room, okay? So just leave, and lemme use it."

            Behind him, the man sighed, and lifted his boken. "I've been practicing with the sword every day since I was little. You have no right to take away my practice time. Come back in an hour, and you can use the room. Otherwise, I'm going to have to make you leave."

            InuYasha sighed, and turned around. "First of all, that ain't a sword, it's a stick. Second, you probably haven't been in a real fight in your entire life. You wouldn't stand a chance old man. Just get out while you still can."

            The man looked at his stick, then back up at InuYasha. "You're the one in my territory whelp. You'd better get out."

            InuYasha sniffed, made a negligent gesture with his hand. "Yeah, whatever." He turned around, and walked towards the rack of wooden swords, wanting to see how anyone could use them. His ears twitched under the bandanna. He whipped around, and held his hand out. The wooden sword thudded into his waiting palm, and his fingers wrapped around it. He grinned at the shocked man, and yanked the sword out of his hands. "You don't get it do you, old timer." He growled. "I'm using the practice room, so deal with it."

            The man blinked, then scowled.

            InuYasha hefted the boken, and inspected it. "How do you get any experience out of using one of these. The man's fist suddenly imbedded itself in his stomach, hard. InuYasha doubled over, his eyes widening. How the hell could a human hit that hard?

            His hand let go of the boken, and it fell into the waiting hand of the man.

            InuYasha stumbled back to his feet, and stumbled back, leaning back slightly. "Alright, old man." He said. "You asked for it."

            The man sniffed at him, and laughed.

            InuYasha growled, and like lightning his fist shot out and snatched the man's boken again, this time holding it properly like a sword.

            The man smiled an odd, confident smile and foretold doom, then moved. His movements were like liquid. He was suddenly behind the stunned InuYasha, with his sword in his hands again. InuYasha shook in pain as the blade of the boken smashed into his back with a sickening crack. Like water, the man suddenly sidestepped around him, drawing the blunt blade around to his stomach, and made a quick chop motion, hitting into InuYasha's gut like a train. The hanyou doubled over, and the man quickly flashed up and brought the hilt of the wooden sword down on his head.

            InuYasha dropped to his hands and knees with his head swimming. "What the hell?" He demanded, rolling out of the way of a downward thrust. The wooden sword stuck quivering into the hardwood floor, and the man suddenly jumped up on it, swinging around and bringing his foot directly into InuYasha's chest.

            InuYasha stumbled backwards, and growled. Quickly, he placed his hands on Tetsusaiga's hilt. "You don't want me to draw this blade, old man."

            The man scoffed. "Like you would have a real sword."

            InuYasha grimaced, and drew the Tetsusaiga, but not willing into its larger form. "Last chance old man." He threatened.

            The man raised an eyebrow. "Well, it's a real sword, but I don't think it'll do much good."

            InuYasha chuckled. "No more than your little toy." With that, he charged.

            The man grinned, and quickly snapped his hand up to counter the mighty swing from the blade. The wood met metal with a single, sharp, clack and Tetsusaiga bounced to the side. Before the clack stopped sounding, the man dropped down, and flashed a leg under InuYasha's feet. As the hanyou slowly fell backwards, the man brought his boken up, slashing across InuYasha's back as he came down. InuYasha was slashing up the second his back hit the ground, driving away the downward thrust that had been aimed at his chest, then hitting the man away long enough to leap into a crouch. InuYasha growled, and concentrated briefly on the battered blade of the Tetsusaiga.

            The man gaped in surprise as the three feet of steel that had been the blade of the Tetsusaiga transformed suddenly into six, glowing hot feet of thick, sharp fang. He didn't even try to block the blow, but instead leaned back, avoiding the blade with skilled precision. Like lightning, the man dashed under the hanyou's guard, and brought his boken up on InuYasha's right wrist. InuYasha cried out, and the Tetsusaiga fell to the floor. The man kicked the blade away from InuYasha's grasping hand, then planted his foot on the hanyou's back. He was panting heavily.

            InuYasha growled. "Get your foot off me." He seethed through clenched teeth.

            The man thought about this, then jumped away from InuYasha. The hanyou slowly struggled to his feet.

            The man chuckled. "Not half bad for a whelp." He said. "Not bad at all. You swing too heavy though."

            InuYasha blinked. He had just made his sword grow twice its original size, and the most the man could comment on was that his swing was slow.

            InuYasha growled at him, retrieved the Tetsusaiga, and headed for the door.

            "Where ya going?" The man asked.

            InuYasha turned. "It's your turn with the room." He said simply. "I'll wait."

            The man spat. "Now hold on!" He said. "Your swings still slow, no matter how much you practice. You need someone to show you how it's done."

            InuYasha raised a lip at him. "And you'll show me?" He asked sarcastically.

            The man nodded reasonably. "Yeah, sure why not. It's good to go over the basics every once in a while. You up for it?"

            InuYasha regarded the man a moment. "You don't find it strange that I just made my sword grow twice its normal size."

            The man nodded. "Good trick." He observed. "You pulled it out too soon, though. I was expecting some sort of trick, when you used it, so you lost some of the effect."

            InuYasha nodded. That made sense, he supposed.

            "See, with a magic sword like that." The man said authoritatively. "You wanna throw them off. Give some sort of really flash slash or something like that." The man did a quick slash in the shape of an X with his boken, then followed up with a thrust and a tremendous cry. InuYasha snorted.

            "That's ridiculous." The hanyou said.

            The man nodded. "That's the point. No swordsmen would get caught by an attack like that, but if you looked shocked enough when they avoid it, they start thinking that that was your ace. Then you take the fight a little longer, then pull out the sword growy-thingy at the most advantageous moment."

            InuYasha nodded, liking the way this guy thought. All previous grudges forgotten. "So, what did you mean about my slash being slow?"

            The man laughed. "Show me a slash, and I'll tell you what the problem is."

            InuYasha nodded, and slashed a might downward slash with the Tetsusaiga, transforming it back into its large form as he did so.

            The man nodded. "Ahh…" He said simply. "I see. You're trying to put too much power into your swing. You don't have to throw so much punch into it. If you hit something with a sword like this, it's gonna die, so don't worry about trying to kill the thing, worry about trying to hit it. Like this."

            "Oh, I see."

            "Now you try."

*****

            Sweat poured down Ayame's face, and got into her eyes, blurring her vision. What little she could see was locked onto the screen in front of her. Little arrows flew down the screen. The scrolled down, and passed a line, where they pulsed once, then flew off the screen.

            As the arrows flew down, Ayame's feet flew to land on tiles with different arrows on the platform on which she stood. She had quite a crowd. Dance Dance Revolution always drew a crowd.

            Her feet flew fleetly, and her eyes remained completely stationary on the line where the arrows pulsed. On the bottom of the screen the score counter was going up into the millions.

            She didn't dare look at her competitor. The girl she was playing with had even a bigger following. Her score was even bigger than Ayame's.

            Kagome watched them both go at it, impressed. Ayame was the master at DDR, but that other girl was giving her a run for her money.

            The new girl looked like some sort of punk. She was American for one, completely white. Her face was sharp, not round. Her hair was long, and honey blonde, with lighter highlights. It was down up in a central part, then was pushed back over her ears, and then fell down her back in at least fifty little braids. Kagome couldn't possibly imagine how she managed to wash it, then put it back up like that again. She wore a big, baggy T-shirt, with the image of an anime girl sitting on the back of a giant wolf. Kagome vaguely recognized it from Mononoke Hime. She had some baggy jeans that, starting at the knees, were filled with holes and rips. Her shoes were huge sneakers. On her head was a backwards denim baseball cap.           

            They whirled in time to the pulsing beat of the game.

            "This is a great song! Dance Baby!" The game screamed at them as the entered a new stage. There was applause from the audience.

            Suddenly the girl on the right looked over at Ayame. "Hey, girl." She said, in oddly accented Japanese. "Not half bad. You played this before?"

            Ayame didn't answer, concentrating on the flickering screen. Her honor was at stake here.

            "Hey, c'mon." The girl said. "Don't be like that. You gotta talk to people! Ya won' make any friends being quiet." She said, her feet still flashing over the panels, and one eye always on the screen.

            "Trying to concentrate." Ayame croaked, her eyes glazing over with sweat.

            "Oh, sorry!" The girl said, as if that hadn't occurred to her. "I didn't realize." She leaned back towards, her own console, and continued dancing. The match raged on for over a good fifteen minutes. Finally, the stopped music signaled that it was over. The American girl had won.

            Ayame stumbled off the machine, and approached Kagome. "I can't believe I lost." She said, breathless.

            Kagome laughed. "You just set the second highest score, and you're worried about being beaten?"

            Ayame nodded. "I'm the best at DDR."

            Kagome rolled her eyes. She would never understand some things.

            Slowly, the crowd dispersed, leaving only Kagome, Ayame, and the American girl. Slowly, she approached the two friends. "Heya!" She said, her Japanese still slightly shaky. "You didn't do bad." She said. "You should be proud."

            Ayame nodded to her, a little bitterly. "Thanks."

            "Name's Terri." She said, happily. "New exchange student in town. You guys go to Seryaski high?"

            Kagome and Ayame looked at each other, then nodded.

            She said something in American, then gabbed both their hands in a vigorous shake. "Sweet! That's where I'm going!" She exclaimed. "I'm in 11th, what are you in?"

            Kagome blinked. "The same… I guess. That's like, two years before collage, right?"

            Terri nodded. "Sweet." She said. "I heard that Japanese schools were the best, so I can't wait to go. I came during the summer to visit my granpa and maybe meet a few folks." She grinned at both of them. "Look like I already have." She said. "Who are you?"

            "Um… I'm Kagome." Kagome said. "And this is Ayame."

            Kagome found that her eyes were drawn to the front of the shirt. It had the shot from Mononoke Hime where San had the blood all over her mouth on it, with the words "Princess Mononoke" on it in American.

            Terri smiled at them, and turned around. "Anyway, I gotta go, but I guess I'll see ya around! Thanks for letting me play ya!" She disappeared into the crowd.

            Kagome turned to Ayame, and gave her an inquiring look.

            Ayame turned to her, and shrugged.

*****

            "Okay, good." The black haired man said, looking critically over InuYasha's sword swing. "So, go home, and practice that, and if you have time, come back here tomorrow right after lunch."

            InuYasha nodded, and, awkwardly, bobbed his head in a little bow to the man. "Thank you, Sensei-Sama." He said, his voice slightly respectful. It was amazing how much a man could teach you in a few hours.

            The man laughed. "Nonsense." He said. "Just call me Lled."

            InuYasha nodded, and turned towards the door.

            "See you tomorrow, InuYasha." The man said, and began walking over towards the rack of boken.

            InuYasha nodded, and walked out the door. It wasn't until he was already out on the sidewalk when he realized that he hadn't told the man his name.

*****

            Kagome arrived home a few minutes before InuYasha, famished from a hard days shopping.

            Mrs. Higurashi welcomed her home with some warm, seafood ramen soup.

            Mrs. Higurashi smiled as they sat at the table. "So, Kagome, how were your friends today?"

            Kagome sighed. "Pretty good." She said. "There's apparently a new exchange student from America in town." She said. "Her name's Terri."

            Mrs. Higurashi nodded. "Yes I had heard about that." She mused. "Is she in your grade?"

            Kagome nodded. "She seems kinda weird though." Kagome muttered. "She's really… random, and she dresses like some sort of punk."

            As if on queue, InuYasha walked in the door, dressed in a bandanna, baggy jeans, and a tight red shirt.

            Kagome turned around to welcome him home. Then saw how the shirt played over his muscles, and turned around again, very quickly. "Hey, InuYasha." She said, sipping some soup.

            "Heya, Kagome." InuYasha said, exhaustion plain in his voice. "heya, Mom. What's for dinner?"

            "Miso Soup." Mrs. Higurashi said. "Sit down."

            InuYasha gratefully sat down, and leaned back in his chair. "Oy, man." He said. "That was one heluva day."

            Kagome looked at him, trying to avoid looking at his shirt. "So, did you manage to train any?" Mrs. Higurashi had already filled her in on the events of the day.

            InuYasha nodded. "There was this one guy there who really knows his stuff. He's showing me a thing or two." He grunted, grabbing a bowl of soup, and wolfing it down.

            Kagome cracked a smile, and chuckled. "You're actually learning something? That's new."

            InuYasha scoffed. "Yeah, well, just wait till you see me in action." He said. "You'd better be ready."

            Kagome rolled her eyes, and sipped some more soup.

            After InuYasha finished his fourth bowl, he reclined in his chair again, raising his arms beyond his head.

            Kagome sniffed slightly, and grimaced. It was definitely time to introduce InuYasha to the shower.

            InuYasha grinned and took a deep breath through his nose. The breath stopped suddenly, and his eyes opened. He inhaled again, testing the air.

            Kagome blinked. "Something wrong?" She asked.

            InuYasha sniffed again, then leaned forward, towards Kagome. He sniffed at her, causing her to blush slightly, then grabbed her hand. He put it to his face, and sniffed it again.

            He looked at her intently, his golden eyes piercing hers. "I smell hanyou." He said.

*****

            A quick note, A boken is a Japanese wooden practice sword (If I got that wrong, please tell me.) And Terri is my character, as well as Lled. I've already addressed Tiamet, although the name is from mythology, so it's public domain. The character is mine, though.

            Oh, and if Terri seems sort of thrown in, that's because she was supposed to.

            And I've tried drawing Ghetto InuYasha (and failed miserably) so, if anyone would like to draw him, I would love you forever if you would E-mail me a copy of the picture.

            Anywho, I've gotta go, so see ya later.