30

Robin's life passed before her eyes. She made it to her tenth birthday party before the yellow sports car disappeared from the road ahead. She didn't even see it pass by the side of the rental car, but she knew it must have because she was still alive. Amon kept his foot on the brake and the car stopped, nose pointing into the outside curve of the road. The sports car spun around and stopped a few yards behind them. The driver's side window rolled down and a 20-something-year-old boy with wild dark blonde hair stuck his head out.

"Is everyone okay?" he asked.

Robin's window had been open for the breeze and she heard the boy's call behind Integra's snarling and cursing. She stuck her head out and answered as politely as she could.

"We're alright," she said. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," the boy said.

Nagira rolled his window down too and joined in the exchange.

"Sorry to ruin your run. You looked like you were really in the zone," he said.

"No big deal," the boy replied. "It was just practice."

Meanwhile, Integra got over her rage and decided to make use of the situation. She stuck her head out of her window too.

"If you practice your driving here then you must be a local, is that right?"

"Yeah," said the boy.

"Do you know where we can find a waterfall on this mountain with a large cave behind it?"

"Oh, yeah. I know that place," the boy said and he pointed up the slope. "Three more corners up there's a dirt road that goes off into the woods. That'll lead you right to it. You won't be able to make it in that car, though. You need 4-wheel drive, or you can walk it. It's only about a quarter mile."

Integra sighed heavily at the prospect of trudging through the woods and slipped back into her seat.

"Thank you so much," Robin finished for her.

"No problem," the boy said. He was about to slide back down into his seat, but Robin called out to him again.

"What's your name?" she asked.

"Keisuke Takahashi," he responded. A moment later, he had spun his car around again and went flying down the winding road towards the town.

31

Ten minutes later the four of them parked the car on the side of the road and started down the bumpy jeep trail that led to the waterfall. Integra was making a statement by walking in front and Amon was content to follow along behind her. Nagira and Robin walked side by side a little farther back. Nagira was enjoying the cool breezes that blew around the mountain. He rarely felt wind like this in the city. And when it did happen, each gust stank of gasoline or fast food. He supposed that living in that kind of environment had made him somewhat jaded. But that didn't seem to matter at the moment.

"What kind of driving was he practicing?"

Nagira pulled his gaze from the trees overhead and looked down at Robin.

"You say something?" he asked.

"I was just wondering what sort of driving Keisuke was practicing," she said. "It didn't look like normal driving."

Nagira grinned. "It's called drifting," he explained. "It's a style of driving made for racing. The basic idea is to let the car slide around a corner so you don't have to slow down and lose momentum. I used to do a little of that back when I was around his age."

"Really?" Robin said, wide-eyed. "But you don't have a sports car. How did you...?"

"I used to have a great car, a little red coupe. I only raced it a few times before I graduated from college. When I started law school, I needed more money so I sold that car and got a cheap one."

"Do you ever miss car racing?"

"No, not really. It was just a hobby anyway."

Robin went quiet then and Nagira did too. He didn't want to disturb her with the truth, but he did miss racing. Those nights at the race course just outside of town were among his fondest memories from the last decade. Those outings almost every weekend were almost the only time Amon would spend with his big brother when he was a teenager.

Nagira could remember announcing to his mother that he was going out and heading for the door with Amon floating silently after him. Nagira never invited him to come along, but he came anyway. In the car on the way to the course, Nagira would babble on about the drivers that would be racing that night and Amon would stare out the window and listen. On the many occasions when Nagira himself wasn't racing, they would stop and pick up some take-out food on their way. And then they would park somewhere close to the end of the course and sit or stand among the crowd at the finish line. Amon rarely said a word, but Nagira knew he was enjoying himself. When the drivers would come around the last corner and charge the line, Nagira and Amon would both lean forward with excitement. No matter who won, Nagira always cheered out loud. And Amon would give him one of his little smirks that was almost a smile.

Those nights went on until Nagira started law school. It was never the same after he sold his car. It seemed like Amon lost interest in everything that had to do with his brother. He moved out and drifted farther and farther away until they hardly ever saw each other anymore. Nagira would never admit it to Amon, but part of the reason he had decided to come on this treasure hunt was for the simple quality time.

"We're here," Amon called back over his shoulder. And he was right. As Nagira and Robin came around a bend in the trail, they had to stop for a moment and catch their breath. The waterfall was taller and prettier than they'd expected. Integra was already looking for a way to pass behind the sheet of water without getting wet. As he got closer, Nagira could see that she would never find one. The waterfall was almost flush with the rock wall behind it. If they were going to get inside, they would have to jump right through the stream to where the lip of the cave floor was just visible through the mist. In a few minutes, they had all placed themselves on the rocks just in front of the falls.

"On the count of three?" Nagira suggested.

"One," Amon began.

"Two," Integra continued.

"Three," Nagira said with obvious delight.

They all jumped.

Story Notes:

"...the waterfall..." - This is the very same waterfall that first appeared in episode 36 of Inuyasha. It sheltered the den of the speed-obsessed wolf demon Kouga and his tribe.