Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to these characters.
Summer was in full swing at the Higurashi Shrine, and the humidity levels were borderline intolerable. Of course, with summer break and summer heat, comes summer coursework. Not wanting to risk forgetting or missing any assignments, Kuroo and Kenma found themselves with the Higurashi siblings at their kitchen table working their way through their homework. Once all assignments were completed, Kenma and Souta made themselves scarce and escaped to the world where dragons and other monsters were needing to be vanquished and quests to be completed.
Kuroo and Kagome on the other hand, migrated and holed themselves up in the family room going over the legend of the Shikon no Tama—declaring that he wanted to not only finish part two of his project, but get a jump start on the third and final section. A sound plan, given that free time was a precious commodity and practice with homework could make it difficult for him to find time to give the report the effort it required. As they slogged their way through the details of the lengthy tale, Kuroo kept frowning and scratching his cheek.
"What's the matter, Tetsu-kun?"
"This just doesn't make sense…"
"What doesn't?"
He tilted his head in thought as he scanned the pages of the manuscript between them. "Well for one, I thought reincarnation took about a hundred years or more? I mean I know that the miko arrived 50 years after the passing of Kikyo, but she was 15 years old when she appeared right? That's only 35 years. How could she be thought to be Kikyo's reincarnation?"
Kagome winced slightly, of course he would notice that discrepancy. To her shame and embarrassment, she never noticed that issue with the tale when her grandfather would tell it to her as a child. "Well she born with the Shikon no Tama in her hip. And there are hints in the tale that the miko was not originally from that time."
"Ok, but why is there no name for her? Every other character in the legend has a name, but the Shikon no Miko has only her title. You would think an important figure in the story would have their name mentioned at least once."
Feeling herself begin to sweat, Kagome mentally scrambled for a logical explanation. "Well, let's say that the whole legend is true, and that the miko was born in the future. You wouldn't want anyone to know who she was and mess up the timeline would you?"
"Meh, I guess so… seems flimsy though."
"Tetsu-kun? How often to myths and legends ever really make sense?"
Kuroo snickered in agreement as he jotted down the last of his notes. Not long after, Kuroo and the gamer duo were ushered outside as the temperature decreased by the Higurashi matriarch. Kagome was commandeered to assist with getting lunch started and promised to catch up to the boys later.
The trio wandered off further into the grounds as Souta peppered the older boys with questions about their club. They had grabbed Souta's soccer ball to use as a substitute volleyball. To Kenma's dismay, he was roped into helping Kuroo teach Souta a few movies and techniques. As they went through the motions of showing Souta how to receive the ball and return it, Souta bumped the ball and it flew wildly of course. Kuroo retreated backwards quickly to try to continue the small rally, but his foot got caught and he began to fall. Twisting to catch himself, he hit the ground hard, and a blinding pain began to radiate from his arm.
"Kuroo!"
"Mama, I've finished preparing the vegetables. Do you need anything else?"
"No, I think that's it. Go ahead and find the boys. I'll call you all when lunch is ready."
Giving her mother a quick hug in thanks, Kagome left the kitchen. As she headed for the door her phone began to ring in her pocket. Pulling out the device, she was frowned in confusion when she read Souta's name on the caller ID.
"Souta, wha—?"
Her frown deepened as his panicked voice called out to her. "Kagome! Come quick! Kuroo's hurt!"
In that moment, she swore that her heart stopped and time slowed. Making a mad dash for the door and slipping on her shoes, she asked for details.
"He fell and tried to catch himself. But he landed wrong and hit a rock. I think he broke his arm."
"Stay put, I'm heading to you." Disconnecting the call, she began to focus on their auras and ran off in their direction.
She had been thinking about how she could tell Kuroo the truth about the 'training program' that she was in last year. This however, was not how she envisioned it. She only hoped, that she didn't lose him in the end—that would break her more than Inuyasha's cruel words nearly did.
Kenma and Souta's eyes widened in shock when Kuroo hit the ground and didn't move right away.
"Kuroo! Are you all right?"
Kuroo released a grunt of pain and slowly rolled onto his back. The two boys darted over to him and checked him over. "My arm hurts. A lot."
"Your bleeding, and that bruising doesn't look good."
Carefully they helped Kuroo sit up and lean against a nearby tree. Once Kuroo was settled, Kenma sat back and pulled out his phone.
"Kenma? What are you doing?"
"Calling for an ambulance." Souta's eyes widened and quickly snatched the phone from his hands. Kenma blinked in shock several times before turning his gaze to the younger boy. "Souta, give me my phone."
Shaking his head Souta pulled out his own cell phone. "You guys have a tournament in a few weeks, right? If Kuroo broke his arm, there's no way he'll be able to play by then. We need nee-san."
Kuroo and Kenma were confused as they watch Souta call his sister. Kenma shook his head at the craziness before trying to reason with the elementary student. "Souta! We need to be calling an ambulance."
"I told you. If you want a chance at him playing in the tournament you have coming up, then that's the last thing we should do."
"That makes no sense!"
Kuroo's pained voice broke through their squabbling, "Guys, could you not right now?"
"Sorry, Kuroo."
"Don't worry, Kuroo. Nee-san will be here shortly, and you'll be as good as new!"
Grimacing at the pain in his arm, Kuroo tried to give the younger boy a small grin. "Not sure how that's currently possible, kiddo. Unless she's coming to finish me off."
"You'll see."
Before either teen could question him further, Kagome darted into the clearing and made a beeline for Kuroo.
"Tetsu-kun!" Gently she looked him over and touched his injured arm to judge whether his arm was truly broken. She whispered apologies for ever wince he gave, and Kenma shifted his weight as he sat to the side with Souta. "You definitely have a broken arm."
"Kagome, we need to get Kuroo to the hospital."
Kagome bit her lip and shook her head. "No, that won't be necessary. Just—just try not to freak out, ok?"
Before they could question her further, she rested her hands just above Kuroo's arm and closed her eyes. Just as Kenma was about to protest once more, he stopped. Both he and Kuroo were shocked when they noticed that Kagome's hands began to glow in a soft pink light. She took a deep breath and released as she opened her eyes to reveal that they were glowing the same color as her hands.
"Kago-chan? Wha—?"
Kenma was in awe of what he was seeing. Kuroo eyes began to droop as his tensed form began to release and relax, and most amazing of all—the swelling and bruising on his arm began to disappear along with the cut. "What's happening?"
Souta glanced up at the older boy, "She's healing him. Nee-san isn't just a miko in name you know."
"This—this shouldn't be possible."
"Meh, it's just not common. Even during the Feudal Era, being able to heal like this was a rare ability. Most just relied on healing with herbs, and their power was used for barriers or cleansing. Very few became warrior miko like Midoriko. At least that's what grandpa said."
Kuroo was wrapped in a feeling of warmth and peace as the light from Kagome hands covered him. And as that feeling began to retreat, he opened his eyes and looked into Kagome's eyes to see the glow begin to fade as well. Glancing down he was stunned to see his arm was healed. He moved and flexed his arm to test whether or not his eyes were lying to him—that he was imagining that the damage was truly gone. There was no pain, he was a little sore but that was it. How?
"You should take it easy for the next day or so, Tetsu-kun. Your body may be physically healed, but your mind still remembers the injury. It'll take a little bit for it to process that the bone is no longer broken. If you push it too far and too fast, you could stress your system."
"Kago-chan? What?"
Releasing a heavy sigh, she looked at her friend and boyfriend. "Come on. This is a long story, and there are a few things in the house that I'll need to tell it." With that they helped Kuroo climb to his feet and the group made their way back.
As they all settled in the family room, Kagome disappeared up the stairs briefly and returned with a photo album. "When I said that I was in a training program last year…well that wasn't exactly true. On my fifteenth birthday, Souta heard scratching coming from the well house and thought Buyo had gotten in. Being a little nervous to enter—and with the story's grandpa would tell, you could hardly blame him—he asked me to go get him. When I entered, I couldn't find Buyo anywhere, but I could still hear scratching sounds. When I turned to look at Souta, I was grabbed from behind by a youkai named Mistress Centipede. She pulled me down into the depths of the well demanding that I give her the jewel, that she could tell that I had it."
"What jewel?
"The Shikon no Tama…" She paused and looked at Kuroo before she continued. "You asked why the miko's name wasn't a part of the legend. If it was, it would have been mine." Opening the album that rested in her lap, she told the story of her travels. Showing the images of the people and beings that she had met.
Kagome wasn't kidding when she said that the story was a long one, and he had a feeling that she didn't tell them everything. Regardless, it was a lot to process. It was one thing to study the legend for a report, it was another to find out that your girlfriend lived part of it. A large part of his mind wanted to shy away, and deny the story she told. Claim it as mere fiction or some elaborate prank. Oh! His mind was playing tricks on him because of the pain from breaking his arm. That was it—but, looking at his arm again, his arm was healed. There was no injury to be seen, all that remained was a dull ache and some dried blood as proof that the injury was there at one point.
Ok. So, her old sensei really was a demon lord. She had her soul ripped out and torn. Had a wolf prince that tried to claim her as his—so why was she dating him? Was it because of a promise between two kids and she felt obligated? It's not like he really gave her a chance to say no with that first date. But did she accept the second because she's just too nice to turn down an old childhood friend?
He isn't sure what to think—Kenma of course is fascinated by all of this. Covering his face with his hands, he took a deep breath and tried to think…
"Tetsu-kun? Are you ok?" He could hear the caution in her voice. Like he was some child that was about to throw a fit. Maybe that's how she saw him? A child that needed to be coddled?
Lifting his head, he looked into those cerulean blue eyes that he adored. He thought at he could see worry and concern, but did he really truly know her? He thought he did.
Kagome bit her lip and absently reached up to fiddle with the end of her braid. "Tetsu-kun, I know that this is a lot to take in. If-if you need time… then I'll understand."
Sitting there with his brain spinning a mile a minute, he was grateful for the out she offered. He did need time. Giving her a nod, he reached out to her and his hand paused for a moment before covering one of her own. "Yeah, I need to think."
With that he stood up, gathered his things and headed out the door. As he walked, he noticed that Kenma caught up to him. "Kuroo? What's wrong?"
"I never really knew her, did I?"
"What do you mean? Of course, you know her."
"She had this whole other life, and she never told me."
"But she did tell you, she told us bits and pieces. It's not like she could have just blurted out the whole story right at first."
Kuroo sighed and watched his feet carry him home. He just didn't know anything at the moment, not a damn thing.
Watching Kuroo walk out the front door was one of the hardest things she ever had to do. There was a part of her that screamed that she needed to chase him down and check to be sure that he didn't hate her and demand that he not leave her. But the part of her that matured in the fires of the Feudal Era, knew that giving him time to process was the best thing she could do at this time. Begging and crying would get her nowhere.
"Nee-san? Are you ok?"
Looking over at her little brother, she gave a sad smile. "I will be, Souta. I will be."
She could only hope that Kuroo would be ready to talk soon.
A few days had passed since Kagome's revelation, and Kenma was concerned about Kuroo. According to Souta, Kagome had not heard from Kuroo since they left the shrine. Hell, Kuroo hadn't bugged him about practicing. He actually got to have a day off from playing volleyball—the gym was currently being inspected, so no summer practice for a couple days.
Heaving a sigh, he knew that he needed to do something. Kagome was apparently retreating into her mind and her memories while throwing herself into her shrine duties. Souta reported that she did that a lot when she first returned from the past, but hadn't done it in months. Kuroo had two days to think, now he had to check on him. It was a strange role reversal, to be the one to haul Kuroo outside for once. There was one other time, after they got thrashed in a tournament before high school, but that didn't take near as much effort.
As they walked down various streets, Kuroo was quiet, still lost in his head. "What are you struggling with the most Kuroo?"
"… It just doesn't seem real. Part of me doesn't want it to be real. Cause if it's real, then I wonder why she's dating me?"
"What do you mean, why is she dating you? Why wouldn't she?"
"She had princes after her, Kenma. Why would she want normal regular me?"
Kenma frowned and paused, causing Kuroo to stop and look back at him. "That has to be one of the stupidest things I've ever heard you say."
"Wha-?"
"Ah, hello Kenma. Kuroo. How are the two of you today?"
Turning their heads to the voice they greeted the newcomer. "Hello, Nekomata-sensei."
Their elderly coach smiled as he looked the two over carefully. "Guessing by the looks on your faces, and chat I recently had with Hiro… You found out about Kagome's secret?" Taking their stunned silence as confirmation, he bid the duo to follow him. Together, they walked to Nekomata's home, and he had them sit while he prepared some tea.
"It is quite the tale, and I'm sure that Kagome-chan probably didn't get to tell all of it."
Kenma looked at his taller friend briefly, "No, she didn't go into a lot of detail. I remember when I first when to the shrine, she said that the shrine had been in the family for 500 years? Does that mean she met her ancestors?"
Nekomata hummed and leaned back, "Met, fought alongside, and saved them. The Higurashi line began with two members of her group. The taijiya, Sango, and the monk, Miroku. They married not long after the final battle, and took on the name Higurashi in honor of their friend. Named one of their daughters after her as well. The Nekomata line, started not too long afterwards."
Both boys were completely focused on him as he drank his tea. "I'm sure Kagome told you some of the story of Sango, and her younger brother, Kohaku? As well as their nekomata companion, Kirara? Kohaku began the family name Nekomata, in honor of Kirara who stood with the taijiya for hundreds of years. About five years after the final battle, Kohaku asked Sesshoumaru-sama for permission to marry his ward, Rin."
"So, your family is connected to Kagome's old sensei?"
Nekomata chuckled as he thought about the old demon lord. "Yes. Sesshoumaru-sama is as fierce as he is cold. He's softened a bit over the centuries. But word of the wise, never say that out loud. Kagome-chan is probably the only one who could and live to tell the tale."
Kuroo was shocked, "Her sensei is still around?"
"Of course! The old dog may be about a thousand years old now, but he's still in his prime. He checks in on us from time to time. Mostly, he just stays in the Makai." A soft mewl rang out in the quite room as a small feline with two tails and red eyes hopped into Kuroo's lap.
"Ah, Kirara. There you are."
Staring down at the nekomata in his lap, Kuroo couldn't even try to deny his new reality any longer.
"Kuroo is worried that Kagome may be settling for him since he's apparently boring compared to the life she lived last year."
"Ke-Kenma!"
"Ah. Well you would have to talk with Kagome-chan about your concerns, Kuroo-kun." Nekomata watched as the teen lowered his head gently petted Kirara's soft fur while she purred softly. "Not many know, but there were other possible outcomes to the battle for the Shikon. She could have died, been trapped in the Shikon with Naraku for eternity, or… she could have been trapped in a relationship with Inuyasha as his second chance with 'Kikyo' in Kagome's body."
"It was her bond and friendship with you, Kuroo-kun, that gave her the strength to approach Sesshoumaru-sama and ask him to train her. When she returned, she had some difficulties that she will have to tell you about. But I can say, that this has been the happiest that the family has seen her since her return. She still has the maturity and wisdom that she gained from her experiences, but she's remembering to be a teenager and have fun again. For that, my boy, you have my gratitude. She's finally come home."
Author's Note: Thank you once again to everyone who's favored, followed, and reviewed!
I have posted this story on Archive Of Our Own under the same pen name incase this site ever has issues with updating again like last time.
See you in the next chapter!
