Author's Note: Back at it again. I'm glad a lot of you are liking the story, the storyline. I'm also excited to hear some of your ideas and reviews. I love it when people review, not only for encouragement but also to see where some of you are going with the characters and the story. Anyways... a shorter chapter this time, just to get some characters in and get some relationships started :)
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha
Kagome walked into the studio room and was met by the sight of Inuyasha, sprawled out on the floor. He was stretching his legs when his eyes immediately came up as he noticed her come in.
"Morning," she said with a smile, though still feeling tired from lack of sleep. She actually had no sleep. She left Midnite around three in the morning, an hour after the club had closed. Jinenji, Ayumi and Midoriko had decided to stay with her after her little breakdown in Jinenji's arms. No one said much but their presence alone helped her a lot. Onigumo had came from his office to find out what was wrong, but she had eventually persuaded him to go home. He could tell that she didn't want him around and he wasn't going to push it if she wasn't going to be open to him. So he left her care to Jinenji and the two women, and she was grateful for that.
After she got home, around three, she just couldn't sleep. She found herself outside on her balcony, sitting in the dark with only the lights from the buildings around her, as she stared out at the sky for hours. The stars were bleak from the city lights all around but she could see a few twinkling lights above. She tried to focus on anything but her problems but they plagued her the entire morning. Dawn eventually came, the sun kissing the sky and changing it into an array of colors as she greeted a new day. After returning into her home to make her breakfast, she returned outside on her balcony until she had to leave to meet Inuyasha by 7am.
"Morning," Inuyasha said. She released the door and walked over to where his stuff was placed against the mirrors. She dropped her bag and took out her necessities. 'Alright, Kagome. Toughen up. Don't think about it. Just do your job and get the day over with so you can go home.' Back to her problems, which was what she desperately didn't want to be around. Inuyasha had said that today would be longer now that he knew how good she was and that she was catching on easier than he thought. So today, she assumed, would be an entire day of work. As much as the thought made her body ache already, she was excited to put her thoughts and energy into work. The only solace she had was that last night was her last day of work for the week, so she could go home and sleep the whole night through.
"Rough night?"
She blinked as she walked towards him and sat on her butt. 'He must notice it. How bad do I look?' she wondered. She thought she didn't look that bad, considering she was functioning off of coffee now, but Inuyasha could tell apparently. "Yeah. Sorry."
Inuyasha arched his eyebrow as she sat a few feet away from him and began to stretch out. She had on a dark blue tights with a loose black razorback tanktop that had "DANCE" on the front. He also wore a black tanktop with a grey cotton pant. He had on his favorite red Nike shoes and his hair braided since today would be a long day. He was feeling much better after last night's release and he was ready for today, just the two of them sweat in a room. Inuyasha groaned in frustration.
"Can you even dance today?" he asked, sensing her weariness and wanting to get his mind off of possibilities. He didn't need his hanyou senses to tell that she was tired. "Did you have to work last night?"
Kagome looked up, surprised, and nodded her head. "Yeah. I'm fine. Last night was rough at work. I got home late and I couldn't sleep. But I'll be fine."
"Dance requires your mental health too, you know."
Kagome smiled with a nod. "I know. I'll be okay. I'm tired but I'm not dead." He left it at that and stood up, allowing her more time to stretch.
"Whatever," he said, turning around and heading over to his bag. He fished out his iPod and placed it in his pant pocket. "I want to teach you five numbers, at the most. Once you learn all the numbers, then we can learn transitions with the entire group. But for now, with just the two of us, you can start by learning the numbers."
Kagome nodded, her back facing him, and leaned forward between her open legs. She was starting to feel the energy and excitement she got when she would dance. Her body loved to dance and no matter how she felt, she always seemed to be in the mood to move. Just like now, she could feel her mind awakening and her body getting loose to do what she loves.
"Ready." She stood up and turned to face him, waiting for his lead. He stood across from her, arms crossed, and she couldn't help but notice how handsome he was. 'Dammit, Kagome! None of this!' She could feel her emotions overcoming her again and she didn't need a full-blown meltdown again.
Inuyasha noticed her change in mood and he arched his eyebrow, watching as she turned from him to face the front mirrors. She waited for him and said nothing, so he took it as a sign to start. This woman was definitely something different. Her scent had hit him the minute she opened the door and entered, and just as fast, he found his body stirring to life at the sight of her. Even though he had his itch scratched last night, just the sight of her and her scent hit him in the gut. Hard.
He made his way a couple feet in front of her to the middle of the room, focusing on the task at hand and not on her. "Okay. Let's start with the simple and then we'll end on the harder one for today. Depends on how long it takes, we might get through all five or not, but it's a rough number."
Kagome smiled and looked at him in the mirror. "You don't have to take it easy on me, you know. I'm a big girl," she said with a smirk.
Inuyasha smirked right back. 'She's playing with me.' At least the strange tension between them was cut by playful remarks. He shook his head with a smile. "You'll regret that."
This time, he really wanted to push her to see how well she could dance but also how well and fast she caught on. He would do multiple numbers with her and then go back through them if she remembered them all after learning so many.
"Let's start off with what we learned yesterday." He turned his iPod on to the song they learned yesterday and he watched as Kagome's head began to nod to the music. He was hopeful that she remembered it and wasn't disappointed the minute he counted off the beat and they moved together.
It was still strange to him how he felt this connection with her when they danced together. He wanted to do a duet with her and he found himself moving closer to her as they danced, both of them catching the other's eyes in the mirror, their entire attention focused on each other. He had to hold in his excitement. He had never met anyone like Kagome who could keep up with him but also who enjoyed dancing so much that it showed in her style. She still put her own signature on some of the moves when time between the movements allowed it, and he was amazed at her dancing skills. For someone who never danced professionally before, she was a hell of a good dancer.
"Good!" Inuyasha said with a smile. "You remembered." They completed the entire routine from yesterday and she remembered all the moves without faltering.
Kagome huffed, catching her breath a little. "Yeah. It was easy, like you said. But fun."
He had to agree. He saw the glimmer in her eyes and what he had seen earlier with her weariness was quickly fading away to bring on an adrenaline rush that he felt too.
"Okay. Let's do the next one."
He shut the music off and looked at her in the mirror. He began to do the first eight count with his feet alone. Kagome watched him a couple of times and then he told her to join in. Then the two of them moved together. Kagome was surprised at how well she was catching on but also how well Inuyasha taught and danced. She had never danced professionally like this, let alone being taught how to dance and she having to follow. But she was catching on nicely and found it easy to learn from him. She found the connection between the two of them disconcerting but she was a little excited by it too. Every time she caught his eyes in the mirror, she felt connected to him, like they were perfect for each other. Something about dancing with Inuyasha made her feel alive.
The morning had gone by slowly but quickly, some moves she would catch on quickly and some she would have to repeat a few times before she could move on. Inuyasha would count off and clap his hands while he watched her and sometimes he would join along with her. True to his word, they were on the third routine when it started to get harder than yesterday's song. But she loved the challenge and even though she couldn't get the moves as fast as she did the past three songs, she kept doing it and doing it, urging Inuyasha to continue on or asking him to slow down, and the whole while he obliged her. She was grateful to him and found herself getting more accustomed to him by the hour.
The two of them were covered in sweat by the end of the third routine and by then it was after noon. Inuyasha wiped sweat from his forehead with his towel and turned to gaze at Kagome as she did the same, the two of them huffing from the energy they spent.
"Lunch break?"
Kagome smiled and nodded. "Sure. I'm hungry."
Inuyasha nodded. "I'm starving." Kagome giggled and he flicked his ears towards her at the sound. He couldn't get over how he enjoyed being around her. How right it felt.
The two of them grabbed their things and left the dance studio. Inuyasha had told her that there was a place across the street that the group would go to all the time for lunch or dinner. They made good food and Inuyasha loved their ramen so she let him lead the way. Outside, the sun was blazing down on them, making her sweat again at the intense heat of the day. She followed Inuyasha across the street and he opened the door for her as they walked into Yura Yura. She smiled at him in thanks as she entered. The feel of the cold air felt good on her damp skin and she had the impression that she smelt like sweat and stink. 'Oh great.' The restaurant was packed. It was small, only having about ten tables from what she could see, but there were a lot of people there and sitting at the sushi bar.
"Come," Inuyasha said, walking towards an open booth. He sat down and she sat across from him, dropping her backpack next to her with a sigh.
"I stink," she said, catching a whiff of herself as she sat down. She made a face and Inuyasha chuckled, shaking his head.
"No you don't. You smell fine."
Kagome arched her eyebrow with a smirk. "I see… you like women with nasty smells, huh?" He glared at her and she laughed. Inuyasha blinked, confused as to why she was laughing, but it didn't matter. He was glad to hear her laugh and her laughter made him feel happy. He just sat back and shook his head at her humor.
"You don't get it."
Kagome sobered and nodded to a waitress who came to drop off menus. "Thank you." The woman bowed deeply and took her leave, making Kagome turn her attention back to Inuyasha. "What don't I get?" she asked, grabbing the menu and checking out the dining options. She was surprised to see some American dishes on the menu as well as traditional Japanese dishes. That was probably why this place did so well here, right across of the dance academy. The academy must have visitors from all over the world with international tastes and Yura Yura was smart enough to fill in that niche.
"I'm a hanyou, Kagome."
Kagome stared at him as if that alone was the answer to all the riddles. He shook his head, explaining to her. "I'm an inu-hanyou."
"I know that." She remembered reading about him and of course Japan knew all about demons and mikos, though most decide to either go one of two ways- accept them or reject them. It was that simple in their country. But going outside of Japan was different and Kagome wasn't sure how demons managed to survive outside of their native land. "I've read about you. You're all over the tabloids, you know?" she teased, seeing his smirk and his puff of pride. She rolled her eyes, catching his attention.
"What? I am famous."
Kagome laughed, her eyes going back to the menu. "Whatever… anyways, as you were saying," she said with a wave of her hand, encouraging him to go on.
Inuyasha turned as he heard the woman coming back. She appeared next to them, dropping two glasses of water, and took their order. He ordered four bowls of ramen, gaining an open-mouth-shocked-face from Kagome, which he ignored. He waited for her to quickly decide and ordered a turkey spinach wrap. He smiled at the waitress as she addressed him formally and she took her leave.
"Anyways…" he continued, her blue eyes focusing back on him as she took a long sip of her water. "I'm an inu-hanyou. So I have heightened senses."
"Like what?" she asked, really interested.
Inuyasha shrugged. "Much like a dog's, I guess. I can smell up to 10,000 times better than humans." Kagome's eyes widened and he chuckled. "Smell is a sense that many of us can't go without and it's what we become so reliant on from the time we leave the womb. We imprint our mother's scent and our sense of smell keeps us alive."
"Wow…" Kagome breathed out. "So… I guess… I smell really really really stink to you then," she said with chuckle, thinking that he must've been dying in the academy with just the two of them sweating it out.
Inuyasha huffed and rolled his eyes. "No, baka. I told you, you don't smell stink."
Kagome looked at him with disbelief. "But you said you can smell way better than me. And from what I smelt of myself when I sat down… I'm glad I have my sense of smell than yours." She saw him shake his head.
"Your scent is fine."
She had to pause on that, thinking what he really meant by that simple statement. She didn't understand anything when it came to demons, let alone their heightened senses. She had only been with one demon and that wasn't even the least bit informational or helpful when it came to understanding their senses. All she knew was that demons were powerful and scary when they used that power on a human.
"What else can you do?" she asked, now intrigued. She leaned onto the table, watching him and waiting.
Inuyasha took a deep breath and leaned back, her scent stronger now. "Well… I can hear much better than you. Hearing is our second strongest sense as an inu-youkai. Well, I think that and touch ties, but our hearing is way better because we can hear higher and lower pitches than humans can and we hear things further away than a human can."
Kagome smiled, really intrigued and awed now. She couldn't believe at the abilities that Inuyasha had. It was amazing and interesting to her to learn more about demons and their abilities, well mostly about him. She was interested in learning about him on a more personal level instead of it being just business between them. She wanted that connection to be a bit more and if that was going to happen she had to become social and personal with him. That would take some time on her part, hopefully.
"Our sense of touch is another heightened sense. It is the first thing we develop when we're born because our mothers imprint on us by holding us. Then, comes the sense of smell during the imprint. A mother-child inu-youkai bond is strong from the moment they're born. Also for the father as well, but usually it's the mother who gets to hold the infant and bond with it. Plus the infant knows her voice after being in her womb so the bond is strong." He thought back to when he was younger. His mother often told him how she remembers giving birth to him, much to his disgust and not wanting his mother to go into the gory details of it all, but she loved to remember how he came out and didn't cry. The doctors had placed him on her chest the moment he came out and his mother told him how she had placed her hands on his tiny back and he immediately moved and whined. His father had told her that he was seeking for her and his mother cried, rubbing his back and talking to him, telling him how much she loved him and how happy she was to have him in her arms now.
"Inuyasha…" Kagome said, calling him back from his memories. "Are you close with your mother?"
Inuyasha nodded with a smile. "My mother, Izayoi, is my rock. My father, Inutaisho, is the Lord of the Western Lands. So when he was busy with ruling his empire and wards, my mother was the one who took care of me. Of course, being that she was the one who had to nurse me."
Kagome smiled sadly with a nod. "That's amazing," she said softly. He flicked his ears and heard the sad undertone in her voice, making him frown. 'What did I say?' he wondered, but then she giggled and closed her eyes, her mood changing like water.
"Your ears are so cute."
He arched his eyebrow at her bluntness. "Cute? Well… they're not a toy."
Kagome giggled some more. "I know that. But I like how they flick around. It's like you're listening intently to everything, although from what you already told me… you can hear more than I can so I think your ears only flick when you are interested in what you have to hear."
Inuyasha froze in shock. Who was this woman? It was as if she was reading him like an open book. She seemed to know more about him than he was leading on, like she could see into him. It was part of the reason why he felt that instant connection to her. There was something about her that he was drawn to and the fact that she could see into him only confirmed his doubts and curiosity. He needed to find out more about her. What was it about her that made him so… interested?
"Am I right?" Kagome asked, sensing his hesitation and judging by the look on his face, she worried that she had said something wrong.
Inuyasha shook his head, closing his eyes. "No one has ever told me that before. You're a smart girl, Kagome," he said with a smile.
Kagome couldn't help the smile that came next. She was glad that they were getting acquainted with one another and he was opening up to her.
"What else can you do? How about your sense of sight and taste?"
He chuckled. "Is this an interview or something?" he asked, watching her blush as she leaned back against the booth, clearly embarrassed.
He quickly reassured her. "Hey. Don't worry about it. I don't mind talking about my abilities," he said, watching as she looked at him slowly, trying to gauge what he reaction. "I can see much better than a human can in the dark and I can see further than a human can. My taste is amplified too but not by much. Out of all my senses, taste is the least powerful. Smell is our most powerful sense and we depend on that the most."
Kagome nodded her understanding. "Are you strong too?"
Inuyasha nodded, wondering why she was asking so much questions now. It was as if she was trying to get to know him without him even being bothered by the fact that he was so different from her. He was never the kind of person to just open up about himself and tell the world of his abilities. They would become a liability to the right person who would want to hurt him or kill him. And yet he found himself wanting to tell Kagome about himself to see if… 'What? To see if she would accept me?' No. That didn't matter.
"Yeah. I'm pretty strong," he said, not wanting to brag. It was actually making him a little uncomfortable now that they spent about ten minutes talking only about himself.
"What about you?" he asked her, seeing her eyes wide as he turned the spotlight on her. "I haven't heard anything about your abilities," he teased. Now it was his turn to lean on the table, interested in what she would have to say about herself.
Kagome giggled, tilting her head to the side as she ran a hand through her hair. He watched her movements and waited for her to open up.
"Well… hmmm… I love to dance. I'm a great dancer." She eyed him and noticed his glare. She had to laugh at his look, his ears were drooped as if he had hoped for more and was disappointed. 'He is so cute.' No matter how she tried to explain it away, there was no doubt that Inuyasha was a handsome and sexy man. There was no denying the obvious, especially when he was hounded on by women all over Japan.
"I love to travel." His ears perked up at a new piece of information about herself and she had to hold in her giggle. "I went to Hawai'i once, you know?" she asked, though she never expected an answer. "That was the only time I left Japan but ever since then, I have had this desire to travel. To see the world and the beauty that is on this earth. I think there's so much out there that no one can contain or understand. And I just want to see as much as I can before my life ends."
Inuyasha was shocked at her desire and insight. She seemed to have a deep soul, one that from what he would compare to as being like a soul of a miko.
"I love the ocean." She leaned forward, her head in her hands as her elbows came onto the table. Now they both were leaning on the table, closer to each other. He saw the longing in her eyes before she even had to explain. "I fell in love with the ocean when I went to Hawai'i and I've always wanted to go back ever since, just to see the ocean. When I came home, I changed my apartment to match the ocean that I remembered so fondly back on my trip."
Inuyasha gave her a look. "Why didn't you go back?"
Kagome shrugged, her eyes going up to see the waitress coming towards them. "I just never had the chance," she said softly, her eyes coming back to meet his. "Life got in the way."
The waitress bowed and placed their food in front of them. Kagome stared in awe at the four big ramen bowls that the woman put down in front of Inuyasha and he put the other three off to his side for now so he could focus on one bowl at a time. He could feel her staring at him just as the waitress left and he looked up.
"What? I'm hungry. Got a problem with that?" he asked, though his voice held no venom.
She giggled and shook her head in bewilderment, grabbing one half of her cut turkey wrap. "Oh no. You go and eat all those ramen… pig," she said softly under her breath.
"I heard that," he said with a glare as he got his chopsticks and brought his face closer to the bowl. Kagome smiled knowingly and shrugged. She took a bite of the wrap and moaned. Their food really was good. The dressing that they used was amazing and she had to find out what they put in it. This might become her new favorite place to eat now that she would be at the dance academy every day.
"Good, huh?" Inuyasha asked knowingly.
"Yeah. You were right."
"Feh. I'm always right," he said before tackling his first bowl of ramen.
Kagome blew out air and shook her head. Their conversation ended with her vacation and they made small talk about today and how well the practice was going. Inuyasha complimented her on her moves and how well she was getting the routines. Kagome complimented him on being a great teacher and how she loved the way he dances. That earned her a blush from him and he quickly recovered by shoving ramen into his mouth, earning a laugh from her. She was getting comfortable around him now. She also felt like she could trust him, in the little time that she spent with him these past two days, which was out of the ordinary for her. They were starting to get to know each other and she found it easy to open up to him, as much as she could.
Once they finished lunch, shocking Kagome at how fast he ate the four bowls of ramen and didn't fall over in a coma, Inuyasha paid for the check, which began a heated argument between the two when Kagome tried to fight him for the check. But in the end, Inuyasha won. They both got up to leave the restaurant and he opened the door for her and walked out behind her. The welcomed heat was actually what she needed now that her clammy skin was in the cool restaurant for an hour.
"You want to finish the next two routines?" Inuyasha asked as they were free to cross. She followed at his side, hooking her thumbs into the straps of her backpack.
"Yeah. I'd love to learn as much as I can. I'm not that tired… not yet, anyways."
Inuyasha nodded in agreement. They crossed the street and entered the studio. Kagome found that he liked opening the door for her and would move in front of her before she even got to the door. She also found that she didn't mind it. She was never one to bend over and allow anyone to do anything for her. Since she was young, she had to be independent and learn how to take care of herself, so she never knew anything but doing things on her own. And yet, she didn't mind the fact that Inuyasha was trying to be a gentlemen. She found it endearing.
The next two hours were spent learning the last two songs that Inuyasha wanted to teach her today. The two of them pushed through their lunch and used that new energy to dance it off together. She found the fourth routine to be a little more challenging as the eight counts weren't consistent, some of them with a slow four count into a quick four count to make a set. She couldn't wrap her head around it until she asked Inuyasha to play the song and dance it for her. He did and she watched him as he moved along the floor. This routine, she noticed, was a lot of movement along the entire dance floor as she watched him glide, his muscles well defined and toned as she noticed every bit of his body. She smiled distractedly, crossing her arms and leaning onto one leg watching him. He was graceful and he was living in the dance. She admired his sexiness as he danced and wondered if he had a lover in his life. As the song ended, Inuyasha turned around, catching his breath but gave her a knowing smirk. The two of them shared a heated stare, teasing each other briefly without having to say anything, and Kagome just shook her head with a smile, going to stand next to him. She was able to catch on to the moves after a couple of tries. The music helped her to understand the rhythm and the beat so now that she saw it and heard the song, "Let's Make Time for You and I", she was able to visualize it in her head and think of the music and what the lyrics were saying as she danced.
The fifth routine was much faster, which she was grateful for it being the last, although in another sense she cursed him for making their last one of the day, after they were spent and tired, to be a fast and energetic number. She kept up with him, though, moving in time to the beat after she saw him do the entire song once. She noticed how sometimes there would be a half-step and she would have to lean her weight just slightly enough in order to shift her weight into the next move or else she would trip over her feet, like she did several times. Even though it was work, she was having so much fun. It was just the two of them dancing together.
It was almost four in the afternoon when they were finally done. Kagome plopped down, groaning as her legs hurt and her arms felt numb.
"I don't think I've danced this much in one day before," she admitted, knowing that she was going to feel it tomorrow.
Inuyasha nodded, sitting down in front of her to stretch out. "If you've never danced professionally before, you'll be hurting tomorrow."
She groaned. "Great. Thanks for the warning." She followed suit and began to stretch out her hamstrings.
"I still can't believe that you haven't danced professionally in your life," he said honestly, wiping his forehead of sweat with his tanktop. "You have great talent. It's hard to believe that no one found you and noticed your talent, or that you never put your talent to use." He watched as she avoided looking at him but he knew she heard him.
"I never really bothered with it. Why waste my time trying out for things that I might not have been ready to do back then?" Inuyasha seemed satisfied with the answer after a moment and nodded his head. He could tell she wasn't going to talk about it anymore. He went back to stretching out his legs and she did the same.
After a minute, his phone began to ring, playing "Girls Like You". Kagome giggled as he walked away, thinking about how she liked that song, as she hummed to the lyrics until he cut it off and answered his phone.
"Yeah. Hey. What? No. I'm still at the academy. Now? Where? Okay. Yeah. See ya." He hung up and went back towards where she was, bending down to stretch.
"I gotta go. That was Miroku. He and Sango are coming back and wanted to meet me at the studio. Apparently, Kikyo texted us and wanted to have a meeting at five. So Sango and Miroku had to cut their weekend short and come back for her." Kagome didn't miss the disapproval in Inuyasha's voice or the roll of his eyes as he straightened back up and looked down at her.
"Let's go."
Kagome smiled up at him and reached for his hand, allowing him to pull her to her feet. At that moment, as she stood next to him, her hand in his, she swore that she felt something between them. She didn't want to leave him and yet she didn't want to stay with him. She was fighting with herself, with what her body was telling her and what her mind was warning her. And yet, this feeling with him, just felt so right. And she was sure he had to have felt it too because he never released her hand and just stared at her, his golden eyes mesmerizing and intense.
She cleared her throat and pulled her hand out of his. "Thanks." Inuyasha brought his hand to scratch the back of his head, unsure of what to do now. She moved first, moving towards her backpack and she heard him follow. She turned to smile at him, hoping to brush off whatever it was that just happened between them so that it didn't turn awkward.
"So, tomorrow then?"
Inuyasha faced her, a little confused, but then nodded his head. "Yeah. Back same time. The others will be here too. I told them there's no practice this weekend since I would be here with you. But now that Miroku and Sango are back, I think it would be good if you met the entire group and we try some transitions just to see how well you mesh with everyone."
Kagome nodded her agreement, feeling butterflies at the thought of having to meet everyone. She was shy by nature but she was sure that she was going to like them all since they all loved dancing. She followed Inuyasha out of the room and the two of them went their separate ways outside of the academy doors.
She headed straight home, planning her night out as she rode the train back: take a nice hour long soak in a bath with Epsom salt and essential oils, then making something fast and easy for dinner, and finally hitting the sheets early to be in dreamland for a long time. That sounded like a wonderful night to her.
-'-'-'-'-'-'-'-'-'-'-
"Hey everyone!" Miroku called, waving a hand in the air. "This is Kagome Saito. She is our new member and hopefully our last for a while," he said with a smirk. Miroku placed his hands on his hips as he turned to look at Kagome with a huge smile on his face. "Kagome… this is the gang!"
Everyone looked at her with smiles and greetings as she stood in front of the entire dance group, nervous and embarrassed by Miroku's grand introduction. She smiled and waved her hand.
"Hi everyone."
Miroku placed his arm around her, making her flinch, and she tried to move out from under him smoothly without it being too noticeable. But he noticed and frowned, quickly apologizing.
"Sorry," he said, holding up his hands.
"Uh, don't worry about it," she said, quickly hurrying to change the subject. "I'm just glad to be able to meet everyone," she said, turning to face the crowd instead of him. The gang were seated close to the center of the room in a clump. But her eyes met Inuyasha's, his lone figure leaning back against the mirrors. His eyes were locked on hers and he had this look on his face as if he was scrutinizing her.
Sango brushed off the tension and came up to slap Miroku on the back playfully. "Alright, alright." She went over to Kagome and acknowledged her with a smile. "I know I told you this before, but I love the way you dance. And I'm soooo excited to dance with you today!" she said, her eyes twinkling.
Kagome giggled. Sango had such a carefree and loving attitude that she was sure she would become friends with Sango just as she was with Ayumi and Midoriko.
Kagome nodded. "Thanks. I'm really not used to being the center of attention like this."
"Bah," Miroku said, swatting his hand at her as he walked towards the others. "You'll do just fine. We won't put you in the center then," he said with a laugh.
Inuyasha rolled his eyes as he stood up and made his way towards the center of the group. "Let's get this started already."
Introductions done, Inuyasha wanted to cut to the chase, much to Kagome's appreciation. Everyone was here, well everyone but Kikyo and Naraku whom she had met that first time here. But as Kagome followed Sango, she counted the amount of people in their group. There were eight new people whom she hasn't met yet. So counting Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku and herself, Kikyo's group had a total of a dozen dancers now. She smiled to herself, thinking of how nice it was to have only a handful of dancers and not a whole class the size of twenty or thirty. That would've been too overwhelming to have to memorize everyone's names and the transitions that they would all have to do. She thought of how there were just a bit more women at Midnite than there were dancers here. And she also noted how there were only four men.
"Alright… let's start with 'Who's Got You?'" Inuyasha announced, reaching into his pocket to grab his iPod. "Kagome learned it on Saturday so hopefully it's still fresh."
She smiled as she fell in line behind the three. She noticed that everyone formed two lines behind Inuyasha, Sango and Miroku. She knew that they were the leaders of the group, as they were the ones who had auditioned her and had been there during the contract signing. It was only natural for the rest of the group to fall in line behind the three. Since she was new, Kagome decided to head to the second row, standing next to a woman who smiled at her with a nod.
"My name is Shiori." Kagome smiled and nodded back. The woman had beautiful long hair that went down to her thighs, tying her thick hair back in a braid, reminding her of Midoriko's long hair.
Kagome faced forward and looked at the backs of the three leaders. Inuyasha stood in the middle with Miroku and Sango on either side of him. The three of them looked towards each other, talking amongst themselves, and then Inuyasha started the music. He turned around to catch her eyes for a brief moment, making sure she was ready, and then he faced forward. She took a deep breath, getting herself in the mood, not wanting her nervousness to get in the way of her love for dancing. She did want to prove herself worthy to the group and she did want to try her best to fit in.
The music went into the verse and everyone moved at the same time. The twelve's movements were all the same, their feet moving together and their hands going up all in synchronization. Inuyasha was very pleased as he watched Kagome the entire time, noticing that she remembered the routine but still putting her signature into the moves. Not all dancers could do that, especially so fast after learning a routine and being new at dancing professionally. But he watched her the whole time, even when they had to turn around, and she was on point. He smiled and noticed that Sango and Miroku were also watching her with smiles on their faces. 'Good. She's definitely a keeper.'
The song ended and everyone clapped it off, their excitement and energy spiking now that they were warmed up and feeling good. Kagome smiled and looked at everyone, feeling their excitement and letting it affect her. Shiori came over and put her hand up for a high-five. Kagome smiled and laughed as she high-fived her back.
"Kagome!"
She turned at the sound and noticed Inuyasha called her.
"Come up here!"
Kagome gulped, the excitement fading now. "Ummm…"
"Don't be shy, Kagome," Sango said, turning around to wave her up. "Come on. Let's see you dance."
Kagome sighed, her eyes going to Inuyasha for help. He just smiled at her, crossing his arms and cocking his eyebrow, waiting for her with a smug smile. She glared at him. 'Awww man… why me?' She had to just suck it up. He did say everyone would want to see her dance and she would have to show them her moves eventually. 'But in the front row?!' She sighed heavily and moved up, heading around the first row to go stand next to Sango at one end. Miroku stood at the other with Inuyasha in between. The woman smiled encouragingly at her and gave her a wink.
"Let's do that one more time," Inuyasha said. He replayed the music and they all got ready and started into the beat. Everyone's eyes were ahead at the mirror, watching themselves and watching each other with smiles, their moves precise. Kagome couldn't stop looking at Inuyasha, and she noticed that he also was watching her, their eyes catching each other's. She smiled at him and put some attitude into her moves, rubbing herself as her eyes remained on him and then she tore them away as she lifted her knee up to flick her hair over her shoulder. Sango did the same, rolling her torso and pointing, then flipping her hair the opposite side and doing the move again. When the song ended, Sango squealed and jumped up and down.
"Oh my gosh! I love you!"
Miroku laughed, running a hand through his hair while catching his breath. "Dang, Kagome. You can dance, girl."
Kagome flashed him a smile, starting to feel comfortable around them now. "Thanks, Miroku."
"Inuyasha told us about your practices last night when we had our meeting. But to see you dance is different. It's different when you watch a dancer actually dance, when they put their heart into it." Sango beamed. "Let's go on to the next one. I want to see what else you can do."
Inuyasha chuckled and searched for the next song. Kagome just shook her head, hoping that she wouldn't disappoint them as they went on to the next song. She heard the next song play and began to run through the routine in her head. She remembered the lyrics that helped to remember some of the moves and she was pretty certain she remembered the entire routine to this one.
The morning went on with the group doing all six of the songs that Kagome had learned over the weekend. On the third song, Kagome had missed a couple of steps, but Inuyasha encouraged her to keep going and don't even think about it. "Keep moving! Get back in the groove!" he would say, and she had forgotten about her mistake and got her head back into the routine. She was grateful that he played off her mistakes, which she had a few in the fifth and sixth songs, as they were the more complicated and faster ones from yesterday that she already had a hard time with. But the entire group was very encouraging and helpful as they all would go over the moves with her, doing the songs over and over until she made no mistakes and was as perfect as everyone else. In the end, she didn't bother with making any signature moves because by then she was exhausted, especially after working the entire weekend and then having to work with Inuyasha all day yesterday. The epsom salts and essential oils in the hot bath helped, but her muscles remembered the pain from the day before and she could feel it quicker, as if not enough time went by for her muscles to fully heal.
"Alright, that's it for the day," Inuyasha said, noticing Kagome's movements slowing down. "I think we've all gotten an idea on how fast Kagome can learn the songs. She's as good as we are." Inuyasha looked to where she was standing next to Sango, noticing her huffing and puffing but trying to put a brave face on for everyone. "We'll pick this up again tomorrow morning. Back to our normal practices."
Everyone nodded and said their goodbyes, knowing that was their dismissal. Kagome had her hands on her hips, taking in gulps of air and sweating like she had just ran a marathon. She felt her legs numb on the fifth song and that was it for her strength and energy. She ran a hand through her hair, getting some of the ones that stuck onto her face.
"Hey."
She turned to notice a man who looked just as old as she was. His youthful appearance made his facial expression even more endearing and cute as he smiled at her, his green eyes full of mischief and youth. Kagome smiled back at him, noticing his fangs. He had short, red hair with pointed ears and she had noticed earlier in the day that he had a long light brown tail. He was a demon, obviously, but she didn't know what species, which made her think that Inuyasha and this demon were the only demons in Kikyo's dance group.
"Hi."
The demon smiled at her and placed his hands on his hips. "I really like the way you dance. You danced before?"
Kagome shook her head, the two of them with their hands on their hips standing across of each other. "No. Not really. I like to dance for fun but never professionally like this," she said, widening her eyes. "This is definitely different from what I'm used to."
He smiled with a nod. "Yeah, I bet. It's a bit of a rush though when we're performing and it's worth all these hours sweating and bleeding in here."
"Bleeding?" she asked with a chuckle. "Never thought I would have to bleed for this position."
"You already got it," he said. "You just have to bleed for the fans."
Kagome nodded her understanding, feeling like life finally came back into her body again. She straightened up and titled her head to look up at him. "What's your name again?"
"Oh. Sorry… my name is Shippo. Shippo Takahashi." He bowed, making Kagome bow back at his mannerism. She smiled as they both looked at each other.
"You are very cute, Shippo."
For that, he blushed, scratching the back of his head. "Uh… thanks." He began to fidget in place and she bit the inside of her cheek before she laughed and got him even more embarrassed. He wore a green tank top with loose jeans pants and white sneakers.
"Sorry. I meant you seem very young and well-mannered…"
Shippo regained his composure and smiled at her. "Oh. Haha, yeah. I'm a kitsune-youkai and I'm only 150 years old."
At that, Kagome nearly fell over as she looked at him dumb-founded. She knew that demons lived a long time, Hiten and Manten told her that they were centuries old, which she always brushed off because she spent so much time with them that they were friends to her. But here was another demon telling her that he was over a century old. Demons and humans knew of each other, of course, but it was still startling to her to here about their powers and capabilities and how long they can live compared to humans.
"Really? Amazing…"
Shippo smiled, noticing her astonishment, and he puffed with pride. "Yeah. I'm an adult now," he said. "But I'm still young in demon standards, just reaching maturity. And to humans I look like I'm 25."
Kagome nodded her agreement. "That's only because demons tend to age quickly from infancy to adulthood for the first decade or two of their lives. After that, we will age very very slowly and outlive many humans by centuries," he explained.
Kagome's eyes widened and she shook her head slowly with a smile. "Amazing. How can you live that long?" she asked, not talking about the scientific process of it.
Shippo frowned, thinking about it, but then he shrugged. "I don't know. Genetics, I think."
Kagome giggled with a shake of her head, seeing that he didn't catch on to her question. "Never mind."
"Hey, Shippo." She looked over to see Inuyasha coming over to pat Shippo on the shoulder a few times.
"Hey, Inuyasha," Shippo said, looking at the hanyou with a huge smile. "I like Kagome. I'm glad you decided to hire her."
Inuyasha smirked as he looked at her, making her flush. "Yeah. I'm brilliant, aren't I?" That made her huff and roll her eyes with a laugh. Shippo joined along.
"Hey," Miroku called, coming over to them. "You guys want to go to lunch at Yura Yura?" Sango came up to his side, grabbing onto his arm, and looked expectantly at Kagome.
She thought about it for a moment, thinking she really wanted to go home and bathe, although more than likely she would just flop on her couch and pass out. But then again, she could tell they really wanted to get to know her more and hang out, and she wanted to do the same.
"Yeah. Let's go!" Shippo said, turning to face Miroku and Sango. Inuyasha nodded his head and all four of them looked to Kagome, waiting expectantly.
She shrugged with a smile. "Sure. Why not?" She smiled at them and moved to grab her things as everyone did the same. Some of the group had decided to go to Yura Yura too so they all filed out of the room and headed across the street.
Kagome felt like she was in a deja vu as this had just happened yesterday with Inuyasha. But then again, he did say that they normally ate at Yura Yura because it was conveniently located across the street and they made really good food. She didn't argue with any of those points. As they made their way out of the academy, Sango decided to spark up a conversation.
"Hey, Kagome," she said, following Kagome out of the building as Inuyasha held the door open for them. "Why did you apply for this position anyways? Like, why now?"
Kagome smiled as Sango came next to her. "Well… I think I just wanted a change in my life. That and the fact that two of my friends were on my case to try out for this position. So I guess if I didn't do it, I would've had to listen to them moan and groan about it all day long."
The two women laughed as the men brought up the rear and the rest of the group followed suit. They crossed the road, all of them making small talk with each other, seeming like a group of friends out in the city.
"Well I guess that's motivation enough." Kagome nodded her agreement. "So… where are you from?"
Kagome sighed, knowing this was going to be inevitable. But she wasn't used to it as her friends at Midnite never asked and never prodded into anyone's business unless it was offered. The women all knew to leave well enough alone, especially other people's lives and the reasons for them working at Midnite. But still, her only friends were those at Midnite. As Kagome looked at Sango, she wanted Sango to be her friend too. Someone normal. Someone outside of Midnite with a different lifestyle than hers and a different perspective on life than she had. She wanted Miroku, Shippo and Inuyasha to be her friend too. So she would have to open up to them eventually and let them know about herself, at least some of it.
"I grew up on Shikoku Island. My father died when I was a teenager and my mother still lives there," that she could only assume.
Sango gasped, looking at her apologetically. "I'm sorry, Kagome. I didn't mean to…"
"No," she said, shaking her head. "It's okay. I've gotten over it." She did. Fast. That was the total, honest truth.
They reached Yura Yura and Inuyasha opened the door for them to enter.
"So… you stayed here and your mother went back to Shikoku?" Sango asked just as Miroku grabbed her elbow and pulled her towards an empty booth. The two of them didn't pay too much attention to what was around them as they were so engrossed in their conversation, or at least Sango was. Kagome followed the two as Inuyasha and Shippo walked behind her. They were able to find a booth with a table directly across that were both open. The four of them fit into a booth and Shippo sat at the opposite table with three of the others.
Sango got into the booth and patted the seat next to her so Kagome sat down. "Yes. I came here when I was 18 and… I just fell in love with the city." It was getting easier and easier to lie to them, which she knew wasn't right and she hated doing, but she couldn't dare tell them the truth. And even if she got to know them more and became good friends with them, Kagome was sure to never tell anyone about her past as it always came back to haunt her. There were some things that she would never be able to share with anyone, for their sake and hers.
Sango smiled with a nod as Miroku and Inuyasha sat across of them. Miroku reached out for her hand and she gave it to him with a smile, feeling his fingers play with hers on the table. She turned her attention back to Kagome. "What did you do when you first moved here?"
Kagome shrugged. "I worked for Starlite ever since I moved here."
"Oh. Yeah, that's a good paying job. You're lucky to have gotten it so quickly."
Kagome nodded with a smile. "I knew some people and they helped me to get that job."
"You work at Starlite?" Shippo asked. Kagome turned to face him, adding him into their conversation since the others at his table were deep in laughter and conversation about something. He seemed more interested in what they were talking about.
"Yeah. I've been there for nine years."
"Woah! Nine years! I've always wanted to eat there," Shippo said longingly. Kagome giggled at his expression.
"I've never once seen you there, and I've eaten there a few times," Inuyasha said. She looked at him across from her and the intensity of his golden eyes gave her butterflies. She played off her nerves and rolled with it.
"There are three levels. And I'm only there four nights a week, so maybe we just missed each other. You've never seen me in the city before either," she said, hoping he wouldn't dig too deep into it. His ears tweaked and he made a face to agree with her.
Sango looked up just as the waitress came over and gave both their tables menus. "Oh. Hi, Kanna."
The waitress smiled at Sango and the rest of them. "Well, hello all of you. Nice to see you all back again," she said, turning so that Shippo's table could be included in on the conversation. "Will you be having your usual for today?"
Shippo rose his hand a little too quickly. "I will!"
Kanna giggled and got out her notepad, jotting down his order. "One shiitake udon." Shippo nodded and looked to the rest of his table. Everyone said their orders, which was mostly their 'usual'. Kagome marveled at how well this restaurant knew them and remembered their orders. Kanna then turned her attention back to their booth and Kagome was the first to start.
"Ummm… do you have tempura udon?" she asked, thinking to order something similar to Shippo since she didn't have much time to look over the menu again. Kanna nodded and wrote it down on her notepad. Sango then went for her usual, as did Miroku and Inuyasha. Although with Inuyasha, Kanna had to smile and ask how much.
"Make it three."
Kagome arched her eyebrow at him as Kanna excused herself. "Just three this time?" she teased. He smiled at her and patted his belly.
"I'm trying to watch my figure."
Miroku burst out laughing, as did Sango and the other table. "As if." Miroku said, leaning so that he could look at Inuyasha sitting next to him. "You can eat enough ramen to feed both our tables and you would still be hungry."
Inuyasha glared at Miroku as the women laughed. "No! I would get a stomach ache, baka!"
Miroku laughed and Inuyasha whacked him on the shoulder for it. "Oww!" he said, rubbing his shoulder playfully since Inuyasha didn't really mean it. He smiled at Inuyasha and shook his head. "Well… you can eat a whole boar, and you know it."
Sango rolled her eyes and just nodded her head, turning her attention back to Kagome. "What about you, Kagome? What is your favorite meal?"
Kagome smiled at her. "I love udon." She looked down at her hands, a slight bittersweet feeling washing over her. "Shikoku is known for their original udon recipes and I grew up on udon. So I've always loved it. It's my favorite meal since I was a child."
Sango smiled fondly, remembering her childhood. "I always loved shabu-shabu. My mother would make it for me only on special occasions, like when I aced a test or on my birthday. But I always begged her and she would always make it for me when I asked," she said with a smile.
Miroku hummed, making both the women look at him. "I don't know what I like…"
"Who asked you?" Inuyasha asked, but Miroku just dismissed him.
"I like yakitori, chicken and beef. And I like soba," he said, really thinking deeply on it which made Kagome giggle.
"Hmph, you like anything," Inuyasha said, closing his eyes and leaning back, crossing his arms. Miroku eyed his friend down, arching his eyebrow.
"As if… you're the one who likes anything and everything. And all of us here knows what your favorite dish is," he said, looking to Sango. She smiled at him as they both continued to hold each other's hands.
"Ramen?" Kagome asked knowingly.
Shippo nodded. "Yup. Really hard to figure this guy out, huh?" Inuyasha growled, making Kagome blink at him in surprise and Shippo laugh at him. Kagome hadn't heard Inuyasha growl like that before and for a moment she was a bit shocked. 'Well… he is an inu-hanyou. I guess that's expected,' she thought, wondering if Shippo could growl too since he was a kitsune-youkai.
Shippo sobered and looked at Sango, as if she had asked the original question to all of them. "My favorite dish is onigiri!"
All of them laughed at the ecstatic way he announced it, making Shippo frown. "What did I say?"
"Onigiri?" Inuyasha asked with a snicker. "Typical." Shippo glared at him, turning his chair out so that he could face him.
"Hey! Onigiri is so cute. And they're delicious," he defended with a pout. Kagome shook her head at his childish character and had to admire him for being so young and pure at heart.
"Hey," Sango said, once again gaining everyone's attention. "How did the practice go this weekend?" she asked, looking between Inuyasha and Kagome. The two of them looked at each other and then looked away, Inuyasha just shrugging.
"It went okay. Obviously, since she knows six routines by now."
Sango nodded with a smile. "Yes, I know that. And I'm still surprised at how fast you learned them, Kagome." The girl just smiled with a shake of her head, obviously embarrassed. "Did you guys even take a break or anything?"
Kagome nodded. "We went for lunch yesterday and then spent the rest of the day practicing. Saturday we only did one song."
Miroku nodded, remembering what Inuyasha had told them last night. "Yeah, Inuyasha told us that you had learned five songs yesterday and one song on Saturday. That's amazing, Kagome," he said with a shake of his head, astonished.
Kagome looked to Inuyasha with wonder. "That's right. You had to meet with Kikyo and Miroku and Sango." He looked at her, waiting for her question. "How did it go?"
He shrugged, sighing as he slumped a little in the booth, getting comfortable. "Kikyo just wanted to know how things were going with your practices and how you were keeping up with me."
Miroku smirked. "Yeah. Obviously we didn't have to be there."
"Most of the time it was just Naraku and Kikyo asking Inuyasha how your practices have been going," Sango said.
Kagome frowned at Inuyasha. "Is Kikyo worried that I can't do it?"
Inuyasha waved his hand dismissively. "No. She's just freaking out and stressing because of the time we have."
"We still have to get our costumes for each number and start having them shipped to O'ahu along with Kikyo's costumes," Miroku said, taking a hand from Sango's to rest his head in his palm, closing his eyes. "There's so much to do."
"It always feels stressful like this," Sango said, trying not to alarm Kagome but to warn her of what things are like in a popstar's life on the road. "We tend to get our costumes two to three months before the concert in case there's any weight changes and what-nots. In your case, we were talking last night about getting your sizes so we can send them in and have Kikyo's fashion designer quickly make all of your costumes. I think ours are almost finished so she will have to start with yours soon and finish them all."
Kagome nodded, interested in all the behind the scenes that goes on. Inuyasha shrugged, catching her attention. "I told Kikyo that you would meet with her sometime this week to sign your new contract and then get measured. Naraku will be there with the contract."
"I can be there, if you want, and can help measure you," Sango said with a comforting smile. Kagome nodded, thankfully.
Kanna came back and started to drop off plates at Shippo's table first, so they began to dig in. Everyone was starving after dancing the entire morning and with the smell of food came their huge appetites.
"What else did Kikyo ask?" Kagome asked Inuyasha. He looked at her, trying to remember what Kikyo said, but the smell of food made his belly growl. Miroku eyed him down, hearing Inuyasha's stomach, and had to hold in his chuckle.
"Ummm… she asked if I thought if you would be ready in three months." Kagome's eyes widened and he watched as she sat there, staring at him. He smiled and nodded his head at her. "Yes. I told her I think you would be ready by then."
Sango and Miroku both added their agreements. "I think so too," Miroku said. "It's obvious now that we were all able to dance together and see how fast you pick up on things. The hardest part now is the transitions, but that we can do further down the road."
"I think it's safe to say that you'll be ready by the time the concert comes," Sango said. Kagome smiled, glad that they all agreed that she was ready and capable. She was glad that she was working hard and it was paying off, that they noticed it too.
Kanna came back to their table this time to drop off their food. She smiled as she dropped off Inuyasha's three bowls of ramen and then everyone else's food. With a bow, she left them alone.
Kagome's stomach growled and she clapped her hands together. "Itadakimasu!" The others followed suit and quickly began to eat their food. She was so hungry that she didn't even realize how fast she was eating until half her udon was gone and her stomach was now feeling the pain of eating so fast. She had to take a breather and as she leaned back, she noticed Inuyasha was on his second bowl of ramen. She just watched him in pure fascination at how much he can eat and how fast. He was like a starving animal that just saw and tasted food for weeks. As if he could feel her staring at him, Inuyasha looked up and caught her eyes. She smiled at him and shook her head in disbelief. He simply smirked with a noodle coming out of his mouth and continued putting more into his mouth. Little conversation was made after they had their food.
Shippo began to make conversation with them as he and his table were finished with their food. Shippo couldn't contain his excitement about the concert and how excited he was to go to Hawai'i for the first time. Since Kikyo was a rising star, this was her first break in Hawai'i, and all of them would be going there for the first time as a dance group at least. Kagome shared with them some of her stories of the first time she went to Hawai'i and how she learned to SCUBA on Maui and the beautiful rainforests that she hiked in and the sunrises and sunsets that the islands have. Shippo just stared in awe at Kagome as she talked to them about her experiences. He was captivated by everything she said, getting excited to go not for work but for play.
Once they were all done, stuffed and content, fatigue was starting to hit Kagome fast and hard.
"Ugh… I think I better get home. I'm exhausted…" she said, slurring her words. The weekend's lack of sleep, hard work yesterday and a night of crying was catching up to her again. On top of today's practice. She thought she had all the sleep she needed, but she was wrong.
Kanna came back and began to take away their dishes while Inuyasha picked up the check, again. Sango had to explain to Kagome that Inuyasha always paid. No matter how many times they fought for the check or tried to get the check from the waitress before the end of their meal, Inuyasha always knew and always picked up the check for them. Kagome just stared at him as she explained it to her, making her wonder what kind of a man, well a hanyou, would do that. 'He must be rich. Well… very rich if they eat here every day.' Yesterday at lunch he did mention that his father was the 'Lord of the Western Lands', whatever that meant. Was that a youkai thing? When she did research on Kikyo's group during the auditions, she had learned that Inuyasha was the son of Inutaisho and Izayoi Fujimoto, one of the top most riches and famous family names in all of Japan. But she didn't deep deeper into what made them so rich and famous and what his family does now as their business.
Shippo stood and Kagome noticed him at the corner of her eye, snapping her out of her thoughts. "Well… let's go then. The ladies wanna head out and I need to get home to watch some Netflix."
Inuyasha shook his head. "You and your anime." He got out of the booth and Miroku scooted his way out, making Kagome and Sango follow suit. The group walked towards the door with Shippo opening the door for all of them and everyone filed out as Kanna said her goodbyes to them all.
The warm air shocked her out of her stupor and the sounds of the city was welcoming now to help clear her mind and get her ready to take the train back home.
Sango sighed, blinking a few times to adjust to the bright sun. "I'll see you tomorrow, then?"
Kagome nodded. "So what's the plan for tomorrow?" she asked, looking to Miroku and then to Inuyasha.
"We go back to our regular routine," Inuyasha explained. "It depends on what we're doing, either getting ready for a show, a tour, or just downtime in between. But normally we all like to come to the academy every other day to workout together and then brush up on our routines. We usually do some online program or just dance it out."
Miroku looked to Inuyasha, curious. "You think we'll workout or just keep getting ready for the show?"
Inuyasha shrugged, looking at Kagome. "I think Kagome and I, or the four of us, can just practice on our own without the others having to do it. That way, they can work out if they want but Kagome can still learn all the songs."
Sango sighed with a smile, shaking her head thoughtfully. "I can't believe it's three months away."
"Yeah. And time is going to fly by fast," Miroku said.
Kagome took that moment to let out a yawn and everyone just laughed or shook their head. She smiled apologetically.
"Okay. I'll see you guys tomorrow then. I'm going straight to a shower and then my bed," Kagome said with a huge smile.
"Tomorrow!" Sango said with a wave. She turned around and set off, heading for the train station. Miroku was right. Three months was going to fly by fast. And she would have to kick it into high gear if she wanted to learn all the songs and then the transitions. It would be an interesting time but she was excited, especially now that the group seemed to accept her, and she was making friends with Inuyasha, Miroku, Sango and Shippo. Soon, her dream of being up there on stage as a real dancer would come true.
