Chapter 31 – Learning to Spell

The whole ward of K10-3 was decorated everywhere from top to bottom. Chrtismas songs were playing in the living room, and in there there was a huge Christmas tree.

Now, in times like this, nurses and doctors did all they could to let all the patients be free in the ward, with no straightjackets or maybe even without being medicated. Of course, it sometimes just wouldn't work out, but this time, there was this one patient who had hope to spend a happy Christmas, free.

It was Inuyasha. He had just spent his night strapped in a straightjacket, but as the doctor had given him a visit in the morning, she decided to give him a chance to show he can spend his Christmas free with other patients. She Had said they have to keep a sedative injective ready in the medicine room's table, just to be sure.

Mitsuhiro would come here work in about an hour, so someone else had to take the straightjacket off. Being trustworthy to Inuyasha, Kaede took care of it.

"Inuyasha, turn yer back against me", the old lady ordered. Inuyasha did just as told. It felt wonderful to feel when strap by strap loosened, and his hands were finally freed again. Now he could lean on his hands to start scratching his ear like a dog. Kaede smiled and took the straightjacket in her arms.

"Come, follow me."

Kaede led the boy out from the 'isolation wing'. They walked the main corridor, when someone met them.

"Yo, Inu!" Koga cheered and raised his hand. He had a Christmas hat on his head. "Nice to see ya! And who-ho, no straightjacket!"

Inuyasha started at his friend.

"Hold a sec!" the wolf boy said and ran to the living room. And when he came back, Inuyasha could see an another Christmas hat in his hands. He put it in the dog boy's head.

"Fits ya", he said and nodded. Inuyasha didn't really agree. He twitched his ears under the hat with a sulky face.

"Well, Koga. I think ye can handle Inuyasha for a while. Just keep 'im company", Kaede said as she turned around, about to go back to the office.

"Yea, yea, fine with me", Koga complained, but with a grin. "So, Inu, come with me!" he grabbed his friend's hand and pulled him into the living room with him. He made him sit down on the couch and sat back beside him.

"Lookit that!" he shouted and pointed at the presents under the tree. "Think you'll have something?"

Inuyasha stared at Koga, but suddenly started sniffing. Koga raised his eyebrow – but yea, he could smell that too!

"Soda's..." the wolf boy said. "Mountain Dew... And Coca Cola... I know! You get the Dew and I get the Coke! I'm sure of it!"

"Maybe", said a man's voice from behind the couch. The canine boys turned around. It was Miroku.

"But you have to wait until tomorrow morning to get to open them."

"You think I'm stupid? Of course I know!" Koga snorted.

And then Kagome appeared in the living room with a letter in her hands. She gave a look upon all of the patients around, and smiled at Inuyasha. She put the letter on a tree branch. Inuyasha could tell it was for him. How? He could smell his father's fickle scent?

But why did Kagome have it? Could it be... she had something for him in that letter?

In that case, shouldn't Inuyasha give something to the girl? But what?

He went into his and Miroku's room and took his paper and pencills from his closet. He started drawing Kagome – but not as skinny as she is. She looked like like a normal, a bit slender girl. Because it would be the most dearest Christmas present for him – for the girl starting to eat. Well, of course things like that didn't happen so fast, but maybe Kagome could start tomorrow?

Then he wanted to frite something nice in the picture. But as he hadn't been to school for a minute, he could write only three lousy kanji -marks . Marks that formed his own name – "Inu", "ya" and "sha". But that's it.

And so he left his room with the drawing and a red pencil. He found Mitsuhiro in the office, writing something on the computer. As he saw the boy, he turned at him with a smile.

"Well, Inuyasha", the grinned. "What's cooking?"

Inuyasha showed his drawing to the man. He gave a look upon it, smiling again.

"For Kagome? How sweet!" And he gave the drawing back. But Inuyasha returned it. "Hm? What?"

Now Inuyasha pointed at a red heart he had drawn in the drawing.

"Ah, you wan't be to write... maybe... 'I like you' in kanji?"

Inuyasha nodded fast.

It took about seven seconds for Mitsuhiro to finish the writing. He handed over the sheet of paper to Inuyasha, but didn't give it to him.

"Now I'll teach you to read this first. It's a very important phrase."

And so Mitsuhiro placed his finger and moved it as they went onwards.

"Here... 'anata... o... daisuki... desu' – I like you. This was the phrase you wanted me to write?"

Inuyasha nodded, grabbed the letter and walked away, leaving Mitshiro behind, his arms crossed, a smile on his face. He was so happy for Inuyasha, and so grateful to Kagome. But hey!

"Wait a minute, Inuyasha!" Mitsuhiro shouted. Inuyasha turned around. "You should take an envelope."

Inuyasha followed Mitsuhrio to the office,where he gave him an envelope.

"Now, it's time to write who will this letter be to", Mitsuhiro said. "Can you?"

Inuyasha wasn't sure. He could barely (actually, even couldn't at all) write the hiragana and katakana marks, but maybe he should give it a try.

Slowly, his hand shaking, he wrote the hiragana 'ka'. Then 'go', and finally 'me'. It did look a bit like a first-grader's writing, but it made Mitsuhiro smile. He pat the boy's back. Inuyasha closed the envelope.

"You should put this under the Christmas tree", the man suggested.

They walked to to the living room. Inuyasha had already decided where to put the letter right next to Kagome's on the tree branch.

Kagome saw this. A warm smile spread on her face.

As the final night before Christmas came, the living room was open all night. If you wanted to, you could stay up all night, watching TV.

Now Miroku wanted to watch one of the DVDs of the ward... "The Exorcist". Well, why not... But there was this one problem: not all of the patients in the ward were old enough to watch it.

"Aw, c' mon!" Koga snorted. "We are all disturbed enough to watch this crap!"

"Yeah, even Jakotsu could watch it!" Kagura puffed.

The nurses looked at each other, and finally sighed and nodded.

"Alright. But there must be at least one nurse for the underaged."

The movie was interesting for some people and for some, not. Inuyasha had retreaeded and gone to bed. Actually, only Koga, Jakotsu, and Miroku with Sango beside him, kept watching. She had her eyes closed as Miroku stroke her shoulder gently.

"You know..." Miroku whispered in her ear. "This must one of the best Christmas' in my whole life."

Sango nuzzled against him and sighed.