The next day was very bright and sunny, without a cloud in the sky. The type of day that everyone was complaining about being too bright. But not me, I was able to see everything and everyone, even people who weren't close. I still wore my rose-tinted glasses, but that in no way meant that I was in a good mood.

"Come now, Mamoiro…" sighed Kaede as we sat inside her hut (which I could now see was just as bare as it had seemed while I couldn't), holding out a wooden bowl with a nasty looking yellow paste inside. "This will help ye heal ye's wound."

"It's just a scratch!" I insisted, backing away on my rump as Inuyasha snickered in the corner. "It isn't bleeding anymore anyways! I don't need that smelly stuff on me!"

"Yes ye do, child." insisted Kaede tiredly. "Trust me, no harm shall come to ye under my care. I am well versed in medicines and ailments, the best in the village."

"You know, it wasn't a coincidence that most everyone in the middle ages died at around 36 ya' know."

"Mamoiro…."

Inuyasha smirked. "Demons are attracted to the scent of blood, idiot. I could smell yours after being asleep for years, while it was still inside your body. Think about the stuff that'll come sniffing while it's running down your side."

I pouted, but finally nodded my head in acceptance. I was traumatized enough for one lifetime, thank you very much!

I hooked my elbows inside my t-shirt and started pulling it over my head, but jerked to a halt Kaede yelled out. "STOP!"

Putting my head back through the hole, I looked at her oddly. "What the hell is your problem!?"

Kaede sent Inuyasha a look. "You, leave us for now!"

He scoffed, but stood up, walking out with crossed arms. "Like I care what some scrawny, underdeveloped human looks like anyways. Puh-lease!"

I resisted the urge to throw something, but looked to Kaede once he was gone. "What was that for?"

"It's called modesty, child!" she exclaimed. "Ye can't parade ye-self about in front of others, be they half demon or not!"

I raised an eyebrow. "Even the- -?"

"Yes, even demons! They may not be human, but they have enough minds in them to appreciate the female form! Now, remove ye shirt and I shall apply the medicine to ye's wounds. I can see ye have scratches and such all along your back as well from the centipede legs ye bumped into."

"Which you didn't help me avoid…" I mumbled, tugging off my shirt. Once it was sitting on my knee, I sent her a glare, which she met with a soft, understanding smile.

"Be ye not worried, child. It matters not the size, you will have no problems feeding your babies, big or small."

I stared at her in disbelief. 'Some expert in medicine…' I thought, suddenly finding myself worried for the villagers.

Kaede moved behind me and started to clean up the numerous scratches along my back. "Ye know…" she said after a while. "Now that the Sacred Jewel has returned, we will have far worse demons to worry about then Mistress Centipede."

"Wonderful." I muttered.

"Not only demons, either." she continued as if I hadn't spoken. "Humans too, with evil hearts, would seek it out to realize their own petty ambitions."

"Why do you think Inuyasha wants it?" I asked, ignoring the way the smelly paste stung my cuts. "Seeing as he's half and half after all…"

"Aye. That is it exactly. Ye see, I knew him when I was just a young girl, before he was sealed to the sacred tree. He led us to believe he wanted to become fully human, but in reality, he wants to be fully demon."

"Why?"

"They are usually stronger. Not always of course, but usually. Power is all that drives his mind." She grabbed my shoulder, making me look back at her through my long hair, which had fallen into my face. Mixed with the rose-colored glasses, it made her stern face a bit harder to take seriously. "Mamoiro, ye must understand. Ye can not allow him to have the Sacred Jewel, no matter what he says. Inuyasha is not evil, but he isn't trustworthy either. Do not allow the jewel to fall into unfit hands!"

"Okay….." I whispered. This made things a bit harder. I'd have to wait until I was certain no one was around if I wanted to give it to him. Which I still did. I was really miffed about the whole trying-to-kill-me thing, but I smashed him into the dirt twice, possibly giving him brain damage, and he saved my life, and he wasn't an annoying retarded villager who kidnapped me, let me wander around blindly, let me get stuck in giant centipede legs, or called me a stupid fox. No, of course I don't hold grudges, why do you ask?

Kaede seemed to believe me, and continued cleaning the cuts and scratches (that SHE caused me to get in the first place). "I suppose ye are wondering how the jewel became lodged within ye's side?"

"Uh-huh."

"I believe ye are the reincarnation of my late sister Kikyou."

"Where'd you get that idea?"

"Ye removed the arrow from Inuyasha's chest. The arrow placed there by Kikyou."

"So?"

"She was the only one capable of removing it."

"Oh. Got it."

"Also, ye look a bit like her. If ye's hair was black, and ye's eyes brown, ye could be twins."

"Oookay."

"Also, the Sacred Jewel, which came out of ye's body, was burned fifty years ago within hers."

"Bunnies!? EW! I had a dead-lady jewel inside me!?! Disgusting!"

"It isn't inside ye anymore, child. What bothers ye so much?"

'

"It's gross! You didn't hafta tell me that! I am so out of here!" I stood up quickly, determined to run out the door, but she quickly grabbed my wrist.

"Halt, child! Put ye shirt on if ye must leave!"

"Damn you're aggravating!" I shouted, snatching the shirt and throwing it over my head, before stomping out the hut and into the village.

X

After I had cooled down a little, I found myself idly strolling around the watery field of what I thought might be rice (lets just say I got below 50 in my agriculture class. About 20 below --). I sighed as I fingered the jewel which had been attached to a necklace, which was now around my neck. "You gotta be kidding me…" I mumbled, clenching my hand around it. "They expect a little blind kid to protect a jewel from demons!?"

I looked to the side, and nearly flew out of my skin at the site of dozens of villagers bowing their heads to me. I 'eep!'-ed and quickly ran away.

Soon I was cresting a hill, to find Inuyasha sitting in a tree at the top. I smiled, having found the only person in the village who was vaguely normal. "Hey! Inuyasha!"

He turned, sniffing slightly. "What're you doing up here?"

"I can't stand to be around that horrible hag any longer. She's so aggravating!"

He smirked slightly. "Ya got that right. Same snotty brat as she was 50 years ago." he dropped down from the tree, smirking down at me. "Where'd that cat of yours go?"

I shrugged. "He's back in the village, being pampered by the kids. He's really lazy, and worked hard yesterday. He deserves as little love after all that."

Inuyasha snorted, dropping down to sit in the grass. I sat next to him a bit more gingerly, seeing as my butt had been so abused yesterday. I sighed, putting my cane into my lap. He watched me for a moment, before hiss hand snaked out, snatching up my cane.

"Oi! Give that back!" I exclaimed, trying to grab it. He held it in his opposite hand, using the left one to hold me at bay. "That's mine!"

"Wow, this is really well made!" he said, running his fingers over the dark polished wood. He let it drop a little, until his hand was over the snake-head at the top. He fingered the tiny fangs and ran his nail over the tongue inside the hissing/snarling mouth. "A lot of detail, too. Where'd you get it? I've never seen anything like this."

"Um, I got it when I was around 11. It was special-made. Can I have it back now?"

"Why would they make an eleven-year-old a cane like this? You don't gotta limp from what I've seen."

"It's not for a limp." I snapped. "Most of the time it's for just for a bit of security, I think you saw that yesterday."

"So it's a weapon? Pretty crappy one if you ask me."

"Yeah, well, where I come from there aren't many Gigantic Centipede Women Attacks."

"Same difference. It wont help much."

"Give it here and I'll show you."

Inuyasha gave me a hard look. "Are you gonna hit me again?"

"Not unless you give me a reason to."

He rolled his pretty golden eyes, handing it to me. I gave it a quick check over for scratches that he might have left, before putting my hand on the snake head. Pushing in one of the back teeth, I twisted it to the right. The head popped off, and I held up a thin dagger for the white-haired boys inspection.

His eyes glittered excitedly, and he quickly took it from my small hands. "Now this is what I call craftsmanship!" He laughed, and started rambling on about it's many different attributes, which apparently you couldn't get here.

Finally I decided that, despite how cute he looked ooh-ing and ah-ing over my hide-away dagger, having my cane in pieces was starting to make me nervous. "Erm, Inuyasha, can I have it back now?"

He pouted. "Yeah, sure."

I leaned foreword, meaning to take it back, but stopped just inches away.

"What is it?" he asked, giving me an odd look.

"What…are those?" I said as steadily as I could, my eyes trained on the top of his head.

"You mean my ears?" he asked.

"Ears?… You have….puppy ears?"

"Yeah, what of it? You can't honestly tell me you just noticed them."

"I…didn't see them…before."

"Lemme guess. You wanna touch 'em, right?"

"Could I?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Pretty please?"

"No!"

I pouted. "Oh fine." I said, turning in a huff to look over the village. I waited a few moments, before leaping on top of him.

"Oi! What're you doing!?"

"I wanna touch 'em!"

"No means no!"

"Come on!"

"Their mine and I don't want your grimy little hands groping 'em!"

"They're aren't grimy and I just wanna touch 'em a little! Now Move! Your! Head!"

"Inuyasha! Mamoiro!"

We both looked to the side to see Kaede looking at us wryly.

"It seems ye two like one another more then I believed."

I blinked down at him, before blushing brightly when I realized the position we were in. I was straddling his waist, leaning over him, and he had a hand on my chest to keep me at bay. Squeaking in embarrassment, I jumped away, waving my cane around in panic. "It's not what you think! I wanted to touched his ears! Really!"

"I'm sure ye were…" she said disbelievingly. Great. She thought I was a whore. Wonderful. Oh well, it's not like respected her or anything. (3) "Either way, ye need not pay attention to Inuyasha. He is a vulgar soul, and ye nee not treat him as human. He is not, after all." (4)

Inuyasha glared at Kaede, before standing up abruptly and walking away angrily. I sent her a disgusted look, before following after him. "Inuyasha, wait up!"

We got to the edge of the woods before he stopped and looked back at me. He studied me for a moment, before sighing and kneeling down.

"What're you doing."

"If you wanna touch 'em, go on ahead." he sighed. "Just make it quick."

I smiled, reaching my cane-less hand foreword, gently stroking it with two fingers. "Wow, it really is as soft as it looks." I said.

"Humph." he looked away. "Now that you've got that outta yer system, you gotta give me something."

"Fair enough."

He looked me over, before holding out his hand. "The jewel."

"Letting me molest your ears is hardly equal trade for a magic give-all jewel." I said, smirking. "How bout this. Pal around with me for, say, a week. Long enough for me to see if your as evil as they say you are, and so I'll be able to learn the ropes with a semi-decent person and not be bored out of my mind. If you can do that, I can 'accidentally' lose the jewel in the dark part of the woods that's got no credible witnesses."

He stared at me, and slowly a smirk started to spread across his handsome, tanned face. "You got yourself a deal, Straw Hair. Ya 'know I could get to like a human like you."

I grinned. "And I could get used to a demon like yourself." made a motion with my cane, like someone tipping their hat. "By the way, most people would call my hair color 'Blonde'. So, if you were tease it, I'd be 'Blondie'."

"Gotcha."

X

I curled myself under the blankets that night inside Kaede's hut, dearly wishing that I could fall asleep. The only sense that was giving me anything useful was my hearing, and it was serving to drive me nuts. I could hear people in other huts snoring, animals walking around, a few night-owl villagers pacing between the huts, and occasionally hear Inuyasha atop roofs. There were crows in the distance and mice in the room. Snakes in the grass and bugs absolutely everywhere.

"I hate this…" I whispered, pulling Bouyo tighter against my chest. "I want to go home. At least when I get nervous at night there I can go to Souta's room."

Bouyo gave a sleepy meow, nuzzling my cheek, before drifting off to sleep again.

I sighed. "Well, at least you seem to like it here, Bouyo."

X