SangOtaku6 & Kagome: (munches on Pocky)
Bankotsu: Rabid Fangirls took off my fuckin' haoris! Damn them to hell! (runs around half naked)
SangOtaku6 and Kagome: (wink at each other & continue to nibble on Pocky)
Kagome: Enjoy Chapter Twelve everyone!
"Bye, Koinu!" Kagome hummed happily, waving her arm.
"See ya tomorrow at school, Kagome!" Inuyasha waved back as he began jogging down the sidewalk.
Watching until he was no longer in her sight, she let out a huge sigh and stepped into her house, closing the door shut behind her.
"So much has happened today," Kagome mused, leaning on the closed door. "I finally have my first boyfriend!" she squealed. Her index finger began to tap slowly against her soft lips. "I hope I'm gonna have one of those fairy tale romance stories! With princes in shining armor who will save me from hell and peril!" Kagome's face broke into a big grin. Thinking back on her comment, she laughed. "I'm such a loser!"
She began to walk up the stairs to her room. "I need a deep cleaning!" she laughed, rounding up a pair of green flannel pajamas and a pair of clean underwear. She skipped merrily to the bathroom down the hall and ran herself a bath.
Letting out a huge yawn, Kagome stepped out of the tub and clothed herself.
Cutely, Kagome stepped out into the hall, wearing her green pajamas and a white fluffy towel atop her head. She slipped on her matching green slippers and jumped down the stairs.
"I wonder if Mom bought any ramen?" Kagome asked herself as she entered the kitchen.
Spotting a pink note hanging off a chibi cat girl magnet plastered on the refrigerator, Kagome flopped over to the fridge. "What's this?" Kagome asked pulling the note off the magnet.
"Sis? Is that you?" came a sleepy voice.
Kagome whipped her head around. "Souta? Why do you sound so sleepy?"
Souta gave his sister a big grin. "Grandpa wanted to get back into shape so he asked me to be his coach," Souta giggled. "He sucks REALLY BAD at baseball. The ball hit him more times than he hit the ball!"
"Souta!" Kagome scolded. "If Mom heard you say that word she'd be pissed as hell!"
"You swear too!" Souta accused, pointing a finger directly at Kagome. "Besides, Mom isn't here right now! She's at Mrs. Ishikawa's place! So there!" Souta said sticking his tongue at his sister.
Kagome mirrored his action and then directed her eyes back on the paper. "Then what's this?"
Squinting at the paper, Souta quickly responded. "Oh yeah. Mom wanted you to go give Aunt Hami that basket of food." Kagome's gaze followed Souta's finger and her eyes fell on a nicely decorated basket filled to the brim with luscious looking fruits.
"Shit! I wish you told me earlier! I've gotta run!" Kagome hastily took the basket, grabbed her brown jacket off the coat rack and ran outside. Luckily for her, as right when she turned the corner, the bus she was supposed to take parked next to the sidewalk.
"Leave it to Souta to not even bother telling me until I'm squeaky clean that I'm gonna have to haul my butt right back outside! I mean, c'mon! I must be the only Japanese girl awake right now running around Tokyo in her kawaii widdle flannel PJs." Kagome sighed and looked up at the bright blinking letters. This was her stop. Kagome pushed open the doors and got off the bus.
Still in her slippers, Kagome flopped around the empty city in which her adopted aunt lived. "Okay, last time I visited Aunt Hami she lived in a really big building; now where is it?"
Kagome squinted her eyes and then glanced down at the sticky note. "Yep, this is Aunt Hami's building." Kagome ran to the building and rang the doorbell. No answer. She hesitantly rang it again. Utter silence. Getting quickly annoyed, Kagome huffed and began rapping her knuckles against the cold clear glass. Still getting no answer, Kagome sighed and peered inside, cupping her hands on both sides of her face to block out the troublesome street lights. There was no movement.
"Dammit!" Kagome cried out, stomping her feet on the ground like an angry child. "This is total bull!" she cussed angrily. Relaxing a bit more, Kagome let out a huge breath. "Fine, I'll come early tomorrow," she concluded.
As she began shuffling her feet forward, something unseen made her stop abruptly.
Her eyes shot wide open; Kagome put a trembling hand to her chest. When the hand made contact, she was even more staggered to find out that her heart beat was accelerating. Her heart, which was pounding heavily against her chest, was quickly gathering speed until it felt as if she had three heartbeats. Then five. And twenty.
Kagome's body began to tremble profoundly and her breaths were becoming ragged. Her head felt as if it would explode any second now and the growing pain in her chest was now unbearably excruciating. Her body could take no more and she fell heavily to the floor, paralyzed with throbbing. The contact to the ground only worsened the pain.
Now laying shakily on the cold cement sidewalk, it felt like her chest was quickly expanding, stretching a lot more than it originally was. She began squirming under the intenseness, clutching her chest tightly, hoping that the pain would go away soon. She opened her mouth to scream out her agony, ushering words out but none came. The pain did not cease but only seemed to multiply with each quarter of a second passing her by. From her eyes dripping down her cheek, were crystal clear tears that the aching had caused. The wind bit down sharply against the cold salt water staining her cheek and she bit down on her lip in response. Now accompanying the two crystal rivers was a small stream of crimson oozing from her mouth that dripped down thickly on the pavement.
The pain screamed throughout her whole body for what seemed like forever until it suddenly stilled; her body then laid slump against the ground. Suddenly the young woman's body began to pulse. Slowly at first, but then the pulsing increased then it stopped as quickly as the pain came.
Still recovering from the shock, with all the energy left in her she heaved her body over and, with shaky hand began to push herself up.
"Anyone," her breathy raspy voice whispered, "please, someone help me." Her body became too heavy for her to carry and she fell over to the side again. Even talking was insufferably painful for her.
Feeling a powerful presence nearby, she lifted her head with much difficulty. She hesitantly got up, ignoring the immense pain searing through out her body, and opened her strained eyes. What was before her made her fall back down in surprise. Inching her neck more, she squinted her eyes.
Is this a dream? she asked herself disbelievingly.
Flying on invisible wings before her, was a handsome man. But not just any normal man; this man was somehow different, that much was noticeable. He was dressed in finely crafted armor from what looked like it belonged in the Warring Ages from the textbooks; so beautiful the armor was, however, even a daimyo of a pleasurable living style would have a difficult time searching for that armor, which boasted of such quality.
Grasped tightly in the man's hand was an oohoko, an extremely exaggerated halberd that would take a reasonably sized group of man to carry, let alone wield.
Looking at the figure somehow eased a tiny portion of Kagome's pain. A sudden surge of immense pain throbbed in her heart and Kagome flinched, bringing her head down.
She took three deep breaths and brought her eyes back onto the man who captured her attention.
Wide familiar azure blue met her chocolate brown eyes and her heart skipped a few beats.
"Such big, bold, and beautiful sapphire eyes," she whispered weakly before collapsing to the ground.
Kagome's head bolted up.
And it accidentally collided with something very hard.
"Ite!" Kagome cried gripping her injured head.
"Shit!" a male voice hissed.
Kagome opened one eye and was more than pleased to see a raven haired boy, slightly older than her, with a long entrancing braid. His hand was rubbing his bruised forehead.
"BANKOTSU!" Kagome cried out. She jumped out of her warm bed and pounced on him. "Omigod! I had the weirdest dream! You'd never imagine!"
Recovering quickly, Bankotsu gave a small chuckle and embraced the girl back. "I could only imagine. You've been out cold for a good three or so days."
Kagome's eyes widened but she didn't pull back from the warm hug. "What? No joke?" she asked.
"Kagome!" a teary female voice cried out.
Although hesitant, Kagome pulled away from boy's embrace and grinned up at her mom. "Hey Mom."
Kagome's mother squeezed Kagome tightly. "Kagome! Oh! I though I was going to lose you!"
Kagome gave a strong encouraging smile and pat her weeping mother's back. "Mom, I'm fine."
"Oh my lord! When Bankotsu walked through the door with you unconscious in his arms I almost had a heart attack!"
Kagome stopped patting her mom's back. Bankotsu found me? Just like in the dream…
Her mother disturbed her thoughts when she immediately let go of her only daughter. "I must call your friends! They've been worried sick about you!"
A strong hand fell on Kagome's shoulder. "Don't worry, Mrs. Higurashi. I'll call the others and tell them Kagome's awake. You two need some time alone."
With that, Bankotsu got up from the wooden chair beside Kagome's bed and walked out of her room. Mrs. Higurashi quickly took Bankotsu's seat.
"Oh Kagome! We've missed you so much! What happened?"
Kagome was about to blurt the odd truth out but quietly shut her mouth. "I-I…I was attacked on the way to Aunt Hami's," she lied. Well, it wasn't entirely a lie.
The little happiness in her mother's face instantly faded at the mention of Kagome's adopted aunt.
"Mom…" Kagome asked. "Mom, what happened?"
"The man who attacked you was probably the one who also attacked Miharu-san."
Kagome's face died. A trembling smile was carved on Kagome's face. "They attacked her too? But that's alright. Aunt Hami's a tough bitch and she can get through anything," Kagome reassured. It seemed more like Kagome was reassuring herself more than her mom.
Tears spilled from her mother's face. "No Kagome. Miharu-san wasn't as lucky as you."
Kagome gave her mother a shaky smile. "Mom… what are you trying to say?"
"Kagome," her mother stated seriously. "I am trying to say Ohana Miharu-san is no longer alive. She died briefly before you got attacked. She was strangled to death."
Killing was second nature to him, it was a sport, it was a hobby, and it was his job. Some people played baseball for fun and for money; it was likewise for him. Killing was something he thought of as 'fun' and 'rewarding' at the same time. It never really occurred to him that while he took pleasure in slaughtering man, making their lowly blood spill to the soiled ground, that the victim's families would be suffering as well. Even if it did occur to him once or twice before, he never really cared; it wasn't his problem to deal with.
It should have been the same for this woman. He was hired to kill her; he didn't know her, he didn't care. But he knew that had he known Kagome loved this woman, he wouldn't had as much as raised a finger at her. But the past was the past and he had to walk forward.
Ohana Miharu was dead and although he didn't know this woman, it obviously had a great impact on a girl named Kagome Higurashi. And that is where it affected him.
Knocking a few times, he pushed the door open and entered Kagome's room. He smiled down at Kagome and her mom. "The others are here."
Kagome's mother gave a surprised gasp. "Wow, already? I'd better go get started on dinner! Bankotsu-san, would you please?"
Bankotsu nodded and when Kagome's mother left he took the seat beside her bed.
Almost instantly, a crowd of people stormed into Kagome's room.
"Kagome!" they all chanted. "Are you okay?"
Kagome smiled; all of her friends were here. Among the little parade were Sango, Arimi, Yuka, Eri, Houjo, Kouga, Ayame, who was one of Kouga's distant relatives that worked in the nearby Sundae Shoppe, Miroku, Kohaku, and even little Shippou, the little boy she often babysat.
Sango leapt at the bedridden girl. "Omigosh Kagome! All of us nearly had a heart attack when we heard the news!" Sango wailed.
"Yeah, Sis and everyone else was pretty beat down over Aunt Hami and you," Kohaku replied solemnly. "It's great news that you survived though."
Eri was about to burst out blabbering when a figure slammed open the door.
"Holy shit! Gome, you're alright!" Haru cried out.
Kagome began to laugh loudly. "Haru-kun! Look at yourself! You're covered head to toe in flour!" Kagome laughed pointing at her brother-like figure. It was obvious as day that Haru had barged out on the Pizza Parlor when he heard the good news.
"Yeah, leave it to little Bro to do something so incredibly stupid," an adult feminine voice laughed.
Kagome smiled. "It's good to see you too, Miki."
"Ack!" Haru gasped. "Sis! Whaddya doing here?"
The girl, Miki, appeared to be in her early twenties and she had shoulder length crimson hair which was pulled into a small ponytail at the nape of her neck. She wore a red sleeveless turtle neck and a pair of casual blue jeans to go along with the style. She had fiery green eyes, which were the only thing that made Haru and Miki look similar. In her emerald eyes, were bouncing sparks of amusement.
"It's good to know you're still alive. It'd suck to have to share your funeral with granny-aged Aunt Ohana." Although it was meant for laughs, everyone, including Miki herself, flinched at the thought of the strong old woman dying.
"Well!" Sango said jumping up from Kagome's bed. "I think we should let Kagome sleep!"
Miki nodded. "Yeah, let Kags get some rest." When no one made any attempt to move, Miki cleared her throat. "Allow me to rephrase that last statement. If none of you stupid fuckers move your damn asses I'll give you all Saturday detentions until you graduate!"
Immediately everyone flew out of the room.
"Ha! You can't give me a detention! I already graduated!" Haru laughed, pointing at his older sister.
Miki narrowed her eyes. "No, I can't but I one, tell Mom, two, sell your bike, three, fuck up your life and four, well, fuck your life up some more. You've got it worse than everyone else, little Bro, so GET OUT," Miki roared angrily.
Haru flew out of the room faster than the ones before him.
Returning back her cool exterior, Miki walked up to Kagome and pecked her on the head. "You get well, alright? You don't have to worry so much about Literature but I don't teach your other subjects." Giving her a small encouraging smile, Miki began walking out. "Hey, Bankotsu, was it? You look responsible; take good care of Kags, alright?"
When Bankotsu nodded his head, Miki flashed a V for victory sign and then left the room.
"What's Miki to you?" Bankotsu asked curiously.
"Miki? Well, that's not her real name. Her real name is Misaki Ishikawa but everyone calls her Miki for short. Actually, besides being my adopted older sister, she's my Literature teacher," Kagome hummed. "She's got a short fuse and will tolerate absolutely no crap but she's still a great person to be around. When me and Sango had girl problems we'd always run over to the Ishikawa's and hang out there. Sometimes we'd even sleep over."
Bankotsu forced a smile on his face. "You seem to adopt a lot of people, don't you?"
Kagome tilted her head thoughtfully and then nodded her head. "I never really thought about it that way. Haru's mom and my mom were best friends in high school and, well, no surprise that they kept their friendship. They were like me and Sango! Together, we're inseparable!" Kagome fisted her hand. "Yep. Best fuckin' friends forever!" Kagome laughed. "Besides, my family is really social so people on my block and around here know me pretty well," Kagome chatted proudly.
Bankotsu nodded his head.
"Bankotsu, are you listening?" Kagome asked worriedly.
Bankotsu smiled. No matter how beat up this girl is, she always has room in her heart… for sick bastard murderers like me, he thought disgustedly.
"I had a dream."
Bankotsu looked up her. "I know; you told me it was really weird."
Kagome laughed. "It is! It's so bizarre I want you to hear it!"
Sighing, defeated, Bankotsu nodded his head.
Kagome smiled cattishly and pat the edge of her bed.
Hesitantly he moved to sit next to her.
"Okay here goes!" Kagome said happily. "But you have to promise you won't laugh at me!"
Raising his hand, Bankotsu laughed. "Scout's honor!"
"You just laughed," Kagome muttered cutely. "Well to start it off. I was walking to Aunt Hami's and then I paused. Not really me but my body wouldn't move anymore. Then my heart started to pound like no tomorrow, super fast."
"Like love fast?" Bankotsu asked curiously.
"No like forty heart attacks fast!" Kagome replied, flailing her arms around. "I fell to the ground and then this indescribable pain went through my body. It felt like something was growing inside of me and it hurt like hell. And then…"
"And then?" Bankotsu repeated.
"And then I collapsed. I tried getting up but my arms felt like jelly and I fell each time I tried to get up. I was tired of trying and was ready to give up when I saw something flying through the sky."
Bankotsu unnoticeably cringed.
"I remember thinking how beautiful the being was. It was almost inhumanly perfect, ya know? When I stared harder, I figured out it was actually a man. A man clothed in beautiful finely crafted armor that looked like something out of feudal Japan. He was immensely strong; you could tell that from looking at him. He wielded a heavy looking halberd that was glittering as brightly as the stars. Then the figure gazed down at me and then I just passed out from the pain," Kagome concluded solemnly. "He had very beautiful eyes, too. They were clearer than the ocean," Kagome hummed. "But other than that, that's all I can describe him as."
Bankotsu felt his heart pounding rapidly against his chest. He didn't know if it was from the fact that she had seen him or how she described him as. Inhumanly perfect, he thought to himself. Nice choice of words! he laughed bitterly.
Kagome blinked up at him. "And you?"
Bankotsu gave her a perplexed look. "And me what?"
"Just curious but why were you the only person here when I woke up?"
Bankotsu's eyes dilated at her question. "Well, erm, let's see."
"Bankotsu's going to be living with us for a while," Souta cried out happily. "Finally! A guy! I don't wanna be the only man around here!"
Kagome reached down and pulled out a slipper from below her bed. "Hey, pipsqueak! Why are you in my room?"
"Nana nana na!" Souta stuck his tongue out at his sister.
Kagome flung her flip flop at the boy.
Bankotsu watched amusingly as the slipper bounced off the boy's head with an almost audible 'boing' sound.
"Oww! I'm telling Mom!" Souta cried out.
"Nana! Go ahead! Who's the one who's gonna get in trouble? The one who can walk or the one who just got attacked?" Kagome taunted.
Souta scowled realizing he lost. "No fair! You cheated!"
"Hey brat, Bankotsu and I will play some fighting games with you later if you behave now and leave us alone, okay?"
Souta's brown eyes began to glitter. "Wow! Really? Is that true? Video games?"
Bankotsu nodded his head. "Sure, why not?"
Souta skipped out of the room. "Cool!" Quickly changing his tune, Souta cried out, "Oooh! I'm gonna tell Mom!" In a sing songy voice, Souta sang, "Bankotsu and Kagome sitting in her bed! Doing more than K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"
Before Souta could recite the next line, another slipper came flying out of Kagome's room and smacked him hard in the head. "OWWWWW! That one really hurt!"
"Ha!" Kagome snickered as she watched her brother run away.
After the girl's laugher died down, silence filled the room.
"So, you'll be bunking with Souta… or me?" Kagome asked nervously. Realizing how suggestive that sounded, she immediately went to correct herself. "Well uh, not that way of course!"
"Hmm, not sure. Probably the couch."
More silence.
"So, if you've been taking care of me for the past three days what about Ryuu?"
After a brief moment, both responded. "Suikotsu."
"Am I that predicable?" Bankotsu pouted at her quick correct answer.
"You betcha!" Kagome flicked his nose teasingly.
Protecting his nose from another assault, Bankotsu spoke up, "Well, Jakotsu, Renkotsu, and Suikotsu will be stopping by tomorrow. I gave them a ring earlier telling you that you're alive and well."
Kagome laughed. "Did everyone really think I was going to die?"
"Not so much Suikotsu, Jakotsu, and I but I think the death of Ohana Miharu shocked everyone and probably made them think worse for worse," Bankotsu replied.
"Ooooh!" Kagome awed in understanding.
More silence.
Dead Silence.
"Hey, Bankotsu, can you do me a favor?"
Bankotsu blinked at her. "Depends what it is."
Kagome laughed. "Aw, c'mon! I'm not going to make you do anything embarrassing! I just want you to pop that CD in my stereo."
Bankotsu walked across the room and picked up a CD case from the desk. "Bad Luck?" he asked.
Kagome nodded her head furiously. "Bad Luck rocks! Have you ever heard of their music?"
Bankotsu frowned. "I've heard of them but I can't say I ever listened to their songs."
"They are a band that does music with lots of beat! If you've ever listened to Nittle Grasper, they are kinda similar but I like Bad Luck more. Sango prefers Nittle Grasper. She says Ryuichi is hot and he is but he's too old for me!" Kagome blabbed on.
Bankotsu smirked. "Oh yeah, then how old is too old?"
Kagome pointed at the CD next to him. "That's a Nittle Grasper CD. The guy with the brownish hair is Ryuichi Sakuma. He's good looking but he's in his thirties."
Bankotsu picked up the CD. "He doesn't look any older than me."
"Yeah, he like, never ages!" Kagome explained. "Oh, this kind of talk must bore you to death! You can just pop the CD in. It's really good and it's not just a girl thing."
Bankotsu pulled out the CD and placed it in the stereo. "This guy looks familiar," Bankotsu said eyeing the CD cover. "I think I saw him in a magazine a couple of months back."
Kagome nodded her head. "You probably would have. There was a huge scandal about Shuichi being gay."
Bankotsu's eyes widened. "He's a homosexual?"
Kagome nodded her head. "Yep, he fell in love with a super popular novelist. His name was Yuki or something like that. It gave both the novelist and Bad Luck major popularity."
Bankotsu titled his head. "So you don't get annoyed by gays?"
Kagome frowned. "What gave you that idea?"
"Well you and Jakotsu are always bickering."
"Nah, we fight but it's cool. It's like bitching at a girlfriend except he's a he. I have no problems with his choice of love life. Besides, it doesn't concern me at all, does it?"
"Wow, you're an awfully positive person aren't, you? You were out cold for almost half a week and the day you wake up you're acting completely normal."
"Well, I'm not in any real pain anymore. A little shaky but that's about it." Kagome yawned. "Damn, I'm so sleepy."
Bankotsu looked over his shoulder. "So you don't want to listen to Bad Luck?"
Kagome smiled. "I honestly didn't know I was this exhausted. I guess that attack did more on me then I thought." Getting back on topic, Kagome added. "I'm just about ready to drift off to dreamland. If you want you can listen to the CDs. I don't mind; I can sleep through them anyway. Heh, maybe I can get you hooked on their music!" Kagome laughed. "Naw, really, bunk wherever you want. My mom seems to trust you enough, which, might I add is quite rare since she met Miroku. I've got some extra sheets in my closet. Feel free to use them."
Kagome yawned loudly. "Yawn, night Bankotsu. And thanks a lot for rescuing me and everything. I really owe you one."
Minutes later, Kagome fell into a deep peaceful sleep.
She wasn't joking when she said she'd fall asleep really soon.
Bankotsu walked over to Kagome's bed and sat on the edge, watching her slumber. His hand brushed stray strands of her ebony tresses away from her face. "I'm sorry, Kagome. I really am."
From the open window, the moon's light bathed her soft skin with a majestic glow, making the young woman seem even more of a goddess than she already was. Bankotsu couldn't help but stare as the perfect scene played. His rough hand gently caressed her silky smooth cheek and his fingers unconsciously traced her round untouched lips.
Laying there, sprawled across the bed, her long ebony tresses spread across the bed elegantly, it seemed like just right setting. But at the same time everything about it was wrong. Besides, Mrs. Higurashi, not to mention Kagome herself, trusted him. He had ruined their lives enough; no need to further the damage.
Gazing down at her pure body once more, the ecstatic dreams came back to him. But now with the innocent young girl right in front of him the imaginings were even more vivid. Resisting all temptation, Bankotsu bent down and placed a chaste kiss on Kagome's forehead. He then got off the bed and went into her closet, pulling out the bed sheets and blankets.
He set them quietly beside her bed, right where he would be if she happened to need anything. Standing up, he gave Kagome one more look over, and began smoothing out the sheets and tucking her in comfortably. Once he was sure she would sleep soundlessly, he got himself tucked between the blankets and put his hands behind his back, listening to the music of Bad Luck.
No, wanna sell your soul. Even if we look the other way in the rain,
No, forget smile again. We just want to keep on laughing.
Hey, chasing after it -- chasing after it -- that pale wind...
Hey, I'm falling in passion, I'm falling in love, and I want to spread my wings.
Few quick comments. First off, I sincerely apologize for not updating quick this week. Everytime my mom goes on my computer she always finds some way to fuck it up. And guess what? She went on. I couldn't type out the stories because it took like ten damn minutes for two letters to appear.
Another thing, I had to split my computer time because Schwarz Stein and I are planning on making a Persumptimum Lovers Bankotsu x Kagome website, me being the webmistress. So yeah, been really busy. So far its coming out okay. If you've got any spare fanart and stuff or any ideas please send them to my email. I need all the help I can get and anything will help!
Next update should be Soldier Boy (Gomen nasai Soldier Boy readers!) because I've been slacking off. (smacks hand. Bad SangOtaku6! Bad!) Again, I'm really sorry about all this hell and I'll try to better organize my priorities.
Ah, yes. new rule regarding Reviewer Replies; well, nothing we can do about that. If you would like a response to your comment or whatever, make sure you have your email posted and please state so. Ya know, type this (R) if you want a reply. There! That makes life easy! Oh and not all the time am I going to reply. Most of the time I will but sometimes my social life interrupts my computer life so pre-sorry on that. Okay, I think that's all.
Jamatane!
! SangOtaku6, Kagome, and Bankotsu !
BTW, did anyone who read Junsei Ai see anything familar in this chapter:D
Another BTW, the quote of the song above is from the song, Super Drive, OP theme of Gravitation.