Yuki x Kagome

Reaching out from underneath her umbrella, Higurashi Kagome felt a few stray drops from the tree she was attempting to hide under splash onto her fingertips. Her grip on the umbrella shifted a little. Did she go for it? The rain was absolutely relentless, and there was still another block before she even reached the shrine steps. Then again, it was not like the tree she was hiding under was really protecting her from the rain, anyway, and she was pretty sure that her mother was going to start getting worried if she did not return from school soon.

The priestess sighed, knowing that she would probably be soaked by the time she even reached the house.

Lifting her umbrella off her shoulder, Kagome eyed the rain like it was an enemy that would be cut down with a single arrow, before finally stepping out from the shelter of the tree. The wind immediately snagged at her umbrella, attempting to rip it away from her, but she held firm, determined to make it to the shrine as quickly as possible. It was not that far, and she was not going to allow a little wind to steal away an umbrella that had survived the feudal era.

Her pace picked up little by little, and she breathed a sigh of relief when she could finally see the pathway up to the shrine up ahead. It would not be much further, and she could already imagine the warm bath and dry clothes awaiting her at the top.

Kagome stepped onto the first step when she became aware of the faint aura nearby. "Hm?" she paused. Her aura spread out, searching for the familiar little rodent, and she smiled when she finally spotted him huddled beneath some foliage that had become a bit overgrown. He had never really bothered her, seemingly curious, and she normally left him to himself, but…

Crouching near his little hiding spot, Kagome smiled a little when she heard him give a soft sneeze. "Hey there," she said, lifting her umbrella so it covered them both. He stared back at her with intelligent amethyst colored eyes, his nose twitching, and Kagome briefly wondered what he was exactly. He was not a demon, that was for sure, despite the faint, dark energy that she felt slithering against her soul, but she still could not figure out what he was. He was sentient, but his aura was muddled and strange, as if something was attempting to keep her as far away from him as possible. "You're going to catch a cold out here as easily as I am, silly. Why are you out in this rain?"

The rat did not respond.

The priestess could not say she was surprised, though she did feel a tiny prick of disappointment. She smiled at the way he tilted his head slightly to one side, blinking up at her with that curious stare. "It's okay," she giggled, finding the rodent quite adorable. "I just wanted to know if, maybe…" she stuck her hand out slightly in his direction, "you wanted to come inside with me? You'd be out of the rain until it stops, and then you can go back home. I won't keep you any longer than you want to stay."

Those large, intelligent eyes looked uncertain, cautious suddenly.

Kagome released a soft sigh, before finally admittedly, "You know, I know you're sentient. I'm almost positive that you understand me, even, and I would feel absolutely terrible if I let you stay out here in this downpour." She noted the rodent's wide eyed stare as his head snapped up from staring at her hand. "I was rather cautious of you at first, too, but you're only a curious little thing, aren't you? You probably felt my aura. I know a lot of animals are rather sensitive to it."

The tiny creature placed one paw onto the ground, slowly approaching her.

Smiling at what she assumed was an invitation, the priestess quickly scooped the little rat up and into her arms. It was best if they got out of the rain as soon as possible. The rodent squeaked in surprise, stiffening, and Kagome cast her smile down upon his nervous gaze. "It's okay," she told him again. To be honest, she was rather glad that he had not bitten her with her sudden movement. "We'll be out of this rain in no time, I promise."

Glancing back up the steps, she missed the way the rodent cast a look back toward the pile of soaked clothing she had completely overlooked.

"I bet I can find you something really nice to eat while we're inside, too." She started up the long trek of stairs with practiced ease, while trying to keep the creature nestled in her arms as calm as possible. The poor thing seemed scared, though she really could not say that she blamed him. "You might even want to come back all the time if I can sneak you some of mama's cooking. I'm sure that she won't mind you in the house so long as you don't try to bring any other rodents with you. Only sentient rats are allowed, okay? Though… we might try to keep you out of sight for the moment. It's better to be safe than sorry, since mama probably won't like me bringing you inside at first."

Only the faint pitter patter of the rain against her umbrella answered her, but Kagome honestly did not mind. It felt nice to know there was some kind of magic still left in the world, despite the fact that it was dark and tainted around the little rodent as it pushed against her senses. That there was some semblance of the feudal era still lingering amongst the streets of Tokyo. It had been a long three years, and since the arrival of this little rat on the shrine grounds, she had felt somewhat relieved to know that there was still some connection to the magic that had once filled her daily life.

That she was not quite as crazy as she often felt.

Then again… she was the one talking to a rat.

"Heh," she laughed softly. She smiled down at the look of confusion the little rodent gave her, his ears twitching nervously still, as she started toward the house. "I'm sorry," she told him. "I just thought it was funny that, well, anyone who saw me talking to you would probably think I'm crazy."

Those amethyst eyes seemed to silently agree with her.

"Let's get inside, okay?" she said. "This rain is relentless!"

The priestess held the little animal close as she quickly opened the door to the house. Her umbrella was a bit more of a challenge one handed, but she managed well enough, shaking it just outside the door and onto the cement to rid it of as much water as possible. "I'm home!" she called. She felt the rat stiffen, and she tried her best to get him to relax by haphazardly brushing her thumb across his back.

"Dinner will be ready soon, Kagome, dear," her mother called from the kitchen. "Make sure you go upstairs and change. I'm sure you had quite the walk in this rain. I'm sorry that I couldn't come pick you up, but your brother needed to be picked up from soccer practice once the rain started and the traffic was horrible."

"It's okay, mama. It wasn't that bad," Kagome replied. "I'll just be in my room until dinner's ready, okay?"

"Alright, dear."

Tucking the rodent between her hands as she peeked around the doorway to the living room, Kagome nearly bit her lip to stop the giggles that erupted in her throat. The little rat's twitching nose brushed up against her hand again, and she quickly fled beyond the doorway once she was certain her grandfather and brother were too occupied with the movie they were watching. The stairs were easily conquered in a minute, and it was not long before she twisted the knob on her bedroom door and stepped inside.

Lifting her hand, the priestess smiled at the little creature, saying, "You almost got us caught sniffing my hand like that!" She chuckled at the way his amethyst eyes quickly shifted away from her, as if embarrassed. "I didn't even know I was ticklish there."

She suddenly looked up when the window frame slammed against the wall. A small sound of frustration escaping her, she glanced back down to see the rat had focused on the sound himself. "I've… been meaning to get that fixed for a while now," she admitted, moving to place the rodent on the bed where he would be safe. "The latch has been badly abused a couple times, and now it just pops open whenever there's a bad storm."

The rat surprised her when he jumped straight out of her hand, scampering for the open window.

"Hey!" Kagome yelped. She stood shocked for only a second, before quickly moving to catch the little creature. It was obvious he was going for the window, and she was not about to watch him jump from the two story building out into that weather. "Hey, now, you're going to hurt yourself!"

The rodent did his best to avoid her, but having spent quite some time traversing five hundred years in order to chase demons, the priestess was just an inch ahead of him when she finally scooped him back up into her grip.

'Pop!'

"What the—?!"

The sudden otherworldly smoke that filled her room surprised and confused her, as Kagome felt a sudden weight slam against her and knock her back onto the floor. Her eyes widened at the sudden proximity of those intelligent amethyst orbs so close to her face and staring back at her with a wide, horrified expression on the face of a very handsome boy. She blinked several times in confusion, several possibilities drifting to the forefront of her mind, before she finally shifted her gaze to the strange smoke that now filled her room.

She instantly regretted the decision.

"Y...y...you…!" she squeaked.

"I'm so sorry!" the boy replied, scampering off of her suddenly.

He… he was naked?!

"Where are your clothes?!" she nearly shouted, shutting her eyes as she tried desperately to reach for the blanket nearby.

Oh god.. oh god… oh god!

"Kagome!" her mother called up the stairs. "What was that sound?"

Oh god.

And that was how Sohma Yuki officially met Higurashi Kagome.