Sora's Birthday

8:88:888:88:8

"You rang?"

Sora walked into the room with a huge smile on his face, his hands behind his back as he looked at Taji, who was sitting on the couch. She smiled and held out her hand for him to sit with her. "Yeah, tonight's the night, and I'd feel better if you was here with me. What took you guys so long?"

Sora blanched a little. "Nothing, I was just in my room talking to my mother . . . a picture of her, anyway. She was telling me happy birthday."

"Happy---Today's your birthday? You never told me about your birthday!Oh, my God!"

Sora laughed and placed his hand on Taji's shoulder when she tried to stand. "It's okay, I'd rather not celebrate my birthday anyway."

Taji frowned but didn't comment as they flipped through the T.V channels. Nyoko walked into the room, sprawling out on the floor with her face cradled in her hand. Shooting Sora a absent minded look, she looked bored with his presence and chose not to comment on anything because Taji was staring holes into her head. "Have there been any attacks?"

Taji shrugged. "I haven't heard about any, but I feel a strange youki near by . . . "

"Oh, that? It's just Nakabashi."

Taji giggled when they heard a loud boom outside, followed by the shrine doors being thrown open. "Thanks for telling the word Taisho."

Nyoko waved off his irritation and watched the news with avid interest. Nakabashi dug in his pocket and pulled out an envelope. "Happy Birthday, kid."

Sora looked a little surprised, and opened the envelope. Inside was two tickets to go to the movies, plus a wad of money. "Whoa . . . this is too much, Nakabashi. I don't think . . . "

Nakabashi rolled his eyes. "Every year I gave you more and more money. You never thought it was too much then."

"Every year . . . That was you!"

Nakabashi shrugged offhandedly and looked over Sora's head to Taji, and winked. "There's two tickets, you know. I guess you can say this will be a type of date?"

Sora gave him a bored look. "How is it going to be a date with you breathing down my neck?"

Nyoko snorted. "He isn't going to follow you. The whole point of giving you the tickets, genius."

Taji stuck her tongue out at her cousin as Sora took her hand. "Do you want to go out with me to the movies?"

Taji blushed. "Sure!"

"She can't, not tonight."

Taji gasped. "Why not?"

Sora choked. "Um, Taji . . . your hair color is black again."

Taji groaned and jumped it, yelling she had to get dressed. Mrs. Higurashi walked into the room and frowned at Nakabashi. "Aren't you the detective---"

"---and a good friend of mines," Nyoko said quickly. "He's here with Sora, like a guardian. It's a long story, I'll explain it later. In the meantime, Sora is getting ready to go out. Do you have anything he can wear?"

Mrs.Higurashi smiled brightly and took Sora's hand, practically dragging him out the room with excitement. "I'm so glad I kept Souta's old clothes!"

8:88:888:88:8

"Crazy woman."

Nyoko smiled. "Gotta love her."

"So, how is it to be the daughter of the tai-youkai?"

Nyoko scowled. "Crap."

"Really? Riches don't mean anything to you, like this generation?"

Nyoko shot him a dark look. "Do I look like this generation? I'm not even human, for Kami's sake! All that doesn't mean anything to me. What I would give just to live a normal life---"

"You desire to be human?"

"No, I desire for everyone to treat me like a regular person. Youkai shoot their noses up at me because of Father, humans hate me because of the money we possess and the power we have---"

Nakabashi sighed and scooted a little closer to her. "You just want to get away; right? Just fly away from it all?"

Nyoko looked up at him. Her yellow eyes sparkled slightly, her face taking on a longing look as she gazed at him for what seemed like forever. She blushed and looked away quickly, running her claws in light circles as her body erupted in tremors. "To be free like the wind . . . to soar above the people . . . that's my dream." She whispered.

Nakabashi bit the inside of his cheek to keep from whining. Blinking furiously, he reached forward, took her hand and helped her up. "C'mon, let's go."

"Where are we going? Grandmother doesn't know . . . "

Nakabashi chuckled and tugged at her hand again. "It's alright, we'll be right outside."

Nyoko smiled and allowed him to lead her outside, picking up the waist of her jeans as she giggled and trotted along behind. Dressed in a pair of oversized shorts and a long t-shirt, her small frame seemed nearly invisible to his eyes. Yet her presence was strong, arrogant, exciting.

Inside, Sora shifted unconfortably in his button down shirt and casual jeans as Taji walked into the room, a nervous blush tainting her cheeks. Thedark purplesilk dress she wore barely kissed her knees, her hair was finely brushed back and styled so that it fell over her face in light caresses. Her eyes, now violet like her dress, sparkled with excitement. "Well . . . how do I look?"

Mrs.Higurashi giggled as Sora turned a dark red color and stammered on his words. Shifting unnervously, still gawking at her, he couldn't find the right words to tell her that the dress fit every part of her just right. "You don't like it . . . "

Sora held up his hands in defense. "No! No, it's just; Whoa . . ."

She giggled and turned a darker color as her gaze raked over his body. She shuddered lightly. The blue shirt matched with his eyes, in the moonlight that seeped through the window giving him a eerie glow. His hair, which was now combed neat and elegantly, hung over his face, kissing his cheeks, his forehead, his neck. She whimpered again when he took her hand and kissed it lightly. "Shall we get going?"

Mrs.Higurashi cleared her throat. "No later than 12:30." She announced firmly. "InuYasha's going to kill me . . .Stay close to the shrine, and please . . . take your phone."

Taji giggled and kissed her grandmother. Sora, taking Taji's hand, nodded to Mrs.Higurashi and led her to the shrine doors, where they slipped around the two youkai standing there staring at each other. Nyoko blinked. "You guys look great . . . "

Taji twirled. Nakabashi whistled. "Wow, Sora. You better watch out with this one."

Sora, though he knew Nakabashi was only kidding around, shot him an evil look as Taji tugged him away. Nakabashi averted his gaze back to Nyoko. "Now, where were we?"

Nyoko stumbled as she gasped. He rolled his eyes, but caught her in the crook of his arm, cradling her against his chest as her heartbeat quickened and her cheeks turned a beet red color. She stared up at him, straining her neck as her eyes darkened, her breath carressing his chin and lips. He closed his eyes. "You . . . smell nice."

She giggled slightly. "My Father's going to kill you, you know."She supplied when his gaze fell to her lips.

He shrugged offhandedly. "If you ask me, the great tai-youkai owes me a favor---"

"Really?" She mumbled as he swept her up, walking over to the God Tree. "And what favor must that be?"

He rolled his eyes and shrugged, hopping into the tree with her and sitting down, cradling her in between his legs and pulling her tight. "I just saved you from busting your head a couple of minutes ago."

She waved off his statement. "That hardly gives you the right to woo his daughter."

He stiffened a little. "Wooing you, am I?"

She chuckled nervously and tried to squirm away. He tightened his hold around her, and growled. "You know, I remember the first time I saw you. I knew there was something different."

She shrugged and tried to squirm again. His hold tightened even more and when she whimpered, it immediately vanished, though not enough to allow her to escape his grasp."Different, how? I mean, I'm just an ordinary youkai---"

"No, your not," He whispered in her ear, his hold tightening again as he growled in her ear. The sound wasn't frightening, it made her body erupt in tremors, made goosebumps erupt all over her skin, it made her roll her head back and whine. "You're different from any other youkai I've ever seen. Me and you . . . That's my dream."

She gasped and sprang up, making his arms grate against her stomach. When he smelt the pain from the movement, he immediately let her go, watched as she simply leaned to the side and fell out of the tree, landing neatly on her face. Slamming her palms on her cheeks, she mumbled something he couldn't understand and ran back into the house.

Nakabashi rubbed his arm and scowled. 'What the hell was that?'

'Need I remind you she's only a pup? You're a grown ass man! Sheesh!'

8:88:888:88:8

Taji giggled as she tugged Sora down the shrine steps. Stoppind midstride, she locked her hands behind her back and leaned forward, looking at him up through her eyelashes. Batting her eyes, he swallowed her and stepped back a little, praying that his eyes didn't falter. "So, birthday boy . . . what do you want to do?"

'Think about what you say before you open your mouth---'"It's doesn't matter; whatever you want to do is fine with me."

She giggled and took his hands. "What I want to do, is what you want to do."

He rolled his eyes and pulled her close, hugging her for a quick moment. Passing people smiled and nodded respectfully, some wrinkling their noses as they passed them by. But they didn't care. Taji sighed and rested her head against his chest. Sora took a ragged breath and dug his nose into her hair. Taking her hand, he began walking away from the shrine. "I know where I want to go."

Taji giggled and allowed him to lead her. Noting the familiar things that they passed by, she frowned slightly when they approached a large building. It looked fairly different because the lights were off, there was no cars in the parking lot, and no children . . . "

"The school?" She asked incredulously.

Sora shrugged and led her to the staircase around the back of the building. "Well, I just thought that maybe we'd go where I first met you, you know? I was wishing it was in the park, but . . . "

She sighed and pressed closer to him, biting her lip as anticipation nagged at her mind. When they reached the end of the staircase, the roof, he led her over to the middle, holding her tight as they looked over the city that was Tokyo. The lights made it shine, the tall buildings and the moonlight made it all to much for her, and she whimper as two fat tears strolled down her face. Sora looked at her with concern. "What's wrong?"

She shook her head, laying her head on his shoulder when he wrapped his arms around her. "It's just . . . It's just so beautiful .. . thank you."

Sora smiled and wiped her cheeks with the pad of his thumb. Then he pushed her bangs out of her eyes, staring down at her, his sapphire eyes shining like a diamond.

The moonlight made her eyes seem an almost unnatural color, gave her soft, creamy skin a blue look. Her long eyelashes tickled her cheeks, her slightly red cheeks giving her the look of an innocent child. She was too beautiful to be human, yet too human to be hanyou. Staring down at her, wrapping one of his arms around her waist and pulling her close to his chest, it wasn't long before her lips parted and she began shivering. Sighing, he stepped back and unbuttoned his shirt, draping it around her shoulders and pulling her back into the embrace. "But what about---"

He placed his fingers on her lips. "It's okay, I'm fine---"

A smothered gasp was all that was heard as she leaned forward, placing her lips on his fingers. Then she felt her tiny fingers anxiously pulling down his arm, and before he knew it, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into a deep kiss.

The honey of the first kiss, the magic of a kinetic storm engulfed them both. Tender and soft, a whisper of movement, a flutter of sensation shot through her as her belly erupted, tumbling over and over. The single brush of her lips against his set off a chain reaction absolute fire that culminated in a low moan as he dragged her closer, stifling her gasp as his tongue darted past her lips. Delightful sensation swirled around him, lost in the smell, the feel, the taste of her.

He pulled back, laying his head on her forehead with a soft smile toying on the corner of his lips. She sighed as she allowed her eyes to flutter close, willed her breathing to return to regular as he scent spiked out of control. Her knees buckled, and when he began nibbling on her bottom lip, she moaned, and then nearly screamed when the whole ground quaked. "What was that?" She whispered.

He grimaced and grabbed his chest. "Whatever it is, the jewel doesn't like it."

She grabbed his arm, and instructed him to duck behind the large vent. He was a little reluctantly, holding on to her arm for a moment longer. Grazing her lips over his, he let her go and did was he was told as she ran over and peered over the side. A rhino youkai, quite angry and insane, was ramming the school mercilessly. A large crack was already in the wall, and Taji had a feeling the old structure wouldn't hold up for long.

Looking over her shoulder, she dug into her bosom, pulling out her phone and dialing Nyoko. Nyoko answered the phone, sound a little shaken. "Houston, we have a problem. I need you to bring my weapons."

Nyoko refused. "No, just stay away from it until we get there."

"We don't have time! If he gets inside the building, that's it for the both of us. I have to take Sora back down, and I'll fight until he's somewhere safe. Alright? Just . . . just hurry." Hanging up before her cousin could argue, she looked over her shoulder and grabbed Sora's hand. "Youhave to make a run for it until they get here."

Sora looked a little nervous. "What about you?"

She grinned. "I'm a miko, remember? I don't have to have a weapon, whether I'm youkai or hanyou. Just follow me, and you'll be alright?"

Taji took his hand and led him down the stairs. As soon as she hit the dirt that was the school ground, the youkai halted his rampage and began walking to the direction they were. "You. . . . the Shikon No Tama . . . give it to me!"

Taji ran behind Sora and pushed him on his back, making him dive behind the dumpster next to them. Running out, she did a backhand flip, catching the youkai's attention and causing him to charge toward her. Springing off of the ground and into the air, she hopped onto the youkai's back and grabbed his horn. "Sora! Run for it!"

Sora, who was a little shaken by her act of bravery, began running towards the gate, when he heard her scream and saw her go flying through the air. Stopping, he began running towards her. "Taji!"

She stood up and held out her hand, but the youkai began charging towards him. Freezing in place he flinched when the rythymic stomping grew nearer and nearer, heard the youkai scream in agony and fly back. Taji, who stood there in an wide eyed wondered, staggered over to him, going through his barrier with ease. "Hey . . . it works."

He flinched and looked at his hands. "What just happened?"

She giggled. She was bleeding from her collar bone, and one of her eyes were closed. "You made a barrier."

He flinched as he reached for a strip of his shirt, trying with care to get the blood up. She winced and staggered forward, forcing him to catch her as the youkai, which had lost a large chunk of it's right shoulder, stood up, raging flashing in it's eyes. "I won't die . . . I will get the jewel."

Sora swallowed hard as it began charging again. Taji, who looked too weak to even talk now, flinched when it screamed in agony, and exploded into a cloud of dust. A little red orbs floated around again before being sucked by the jewel, which this time was now pulsing a bright red color. Nyoko went over to them, sniffing Taji's wound with concern before Nakabashi walked over and swept her up with ease. "Let's get her back to the shrine."

8:88:888:88:8

Sora paced around the room with worry as Nyoko walked out, wiping her hands on a clothe and wiping her forehead. "Her wound is pretty bad, and because she's a human, it won't heal until the day after tomorrow. Luckily, we're not going home until another week, so nobody will notice the change."

Sora sighed and hugged Nyoko, catching the inu-youkai off guard. "I'm sorry . . . I should have told her to stay home since tonight is . . . "

Nyoko waved off his spology. "It's alright. The fool was laughing about the whole thing while I cleaned her up. She's fine."

Sora thanked Nyoko once again before rushing upstairs. Nakabashi sighed and sprawled out on the couch. She smiled and sat next to him, braiding her hair as she hummed silently. He watched her with avid interest, a slight smile toying with his lips as she finished the surprisingly long, and seemingly agonizing task and threw it over her shoulder. Frowning, she reached over and began braiding his hair. "Oi!"

She giggled, but snatched her hands back quickly, folding them in her lap with innocence. "Sorry."

He grabbed his hair protectively. He sighed and placed it back in her hands. "Go ahead, it's been forever since anyone even looked at it anyway."

Nyoko smiled and ran her fingers throught he silky strands, massaging his scalp and causing him to erupt with a soft rumbling sound from deep in his chest. His scent, which was usually strong and daring, relaxed a little bit, calming her nerves from battle as he sighed and let his eyes drift close. "About what happened earlier . . . "

He shrugged offhandedly. "It's alright . . . I had no right saying something like that. You're a pup . .. you deserve a pup. I'm too old."

"You're barely older than I am," She remarked dryly. "But . . . that's not the point. Father had already decided he will arrange my marraige."

Nakabashi sat up sharply. "What?"

She looked at the floor. "On my 17th birthday, I am to be wed and mated. It's already been decided."

"But . . . you're brother . . . you're sister . . . "

"Are different from me. Very different."

Nakabashi sighed and threw his legs over the side, crossing them and leaning back casually. "Do you have any idea who this young man is?"

She winced and squeezed her eyes tight. "He's hardly young at all. More like Uncle Miroku's age. . . " She shook her head and stood up abruptly. "It's . . . it's nothing. Forget I said any of it."

He grabbed her wrist. "You have a free will. You can't let him do this, you can't!"

She shook her head. "Father is tai-youkai. No human or youkai would be foolish enough to challenge him . . . anyway, it doesn't matter. I wouldn't be able to find a mate on my own anyway." She smiled sadly. "I guess he's doing me a favor."

"That's not true,"He said, stepping closer to her. His scent spiked, took on an angry note, and she could hardly breath as her mind because hazy, her legs weak like jelly. "You could find a mate anytime you'd want," He trailed his claws up and down her arms. "Who'd treat you like the princess you are."

With a smothered gasp, she pulled away from him, nearly tripping on her own two feet, she nearly ran out of the room and down the hall. He heard the door slam behind her, and he sighed as he sat back on the couch with a thump.

Meanwhile, Sora planted a kiss on Taji's injured shoulder. She winced, but giggled as she toyed with his hair. "Were you crying Kitohoshi?"

He shrugged. "Almost."

She shook her head, jabbed him in the arm softly. Rolling her eyes, she sat up, winced again and grabbed her arm. He reached forward and she slapped his hand away. "I'm fine. First time I've ever took an injury like this, but I'm fine."

He looked like he wanted to force her to lay back down and go to sleep, but he gave a weak smile that tore at her heart. "Did you have fun?"

She smiled. "Yeah, I hitched a ride on a rhino. You should try that one day."

"I think I'll pass cowgirl." He chuckled, running his fingers through her hair. "You'll be like this until the morning."

She sighed. "Yea, unfortunantly."

He shrugged and kissed her softly. "I like you better with silver and gold anyway."

"Really? I was thinking about dying my hair red like Hanako."

Sora rolled his eyes and leaned forward, resting his head on her lap. She gasped, but using her uninjured arm, began toying with his hair again. Allowing the silence to fall over them , choke them, neither was desiring to say anything, fearing they would spoil the mood they had worked so hard for. Shuddering lightly as a could breeze sauntered through the room, Sora looked up at her and winked. "This dress looks horrible on me, doesn't it?"

Sora rolled his eyes. "That dress is totally you."

She looked at him, a sparkle of amusement in her eyes. "I think you'd like me in anything."

'Or nothing at all---' Sora blushed and plucked himself upside the head. She raised an eyebrow at him, but didn't comment. Instead, she laid back and closed her eyes, finally allowing fatigue to get the best of her.

8:88:888:88:8

A/N

Hey there! Yea, you! Enjoy!

Hehehehe . . . . For those of you who haven't bothered to check :

Check out my bio! Check out my web page! Join my yahoo group! Please?