Thanks for everyone who patiently waited for the next part through all my finals, illness, weddings (not mine) and vacations (mine, and it was great!) Wow, it's been a busy last couple of weeks! I'm hoping now that summer's here, I'll have a lot more time to get stuff down, and since I finally had an moment of Inuyasha enlightenment of how all this is going to turn out, there is an end in sight. (For all those faint of heart, it'll all turn out good in the end, don't worry!) So keep reading, and keep reviewing!

If there were any arguments for choosing the present day over the Feudal Era, ice cream, Kagome decided, would probably be a major plus for the present day. Something about the smooth cool texture hovering between solid and liquid in her mouth always brought about a giddiness and ease of life's tensions. Feeling somewhat conscientious, Kagome tried extremely hard not to be completely childish and get it all over her face while she ate, but the warm afternoon sun made it a race to finish before it oozed its way all over everything. Fortunately, she noticed, Kanota was having some difficulty too, constantly chasing trailing drips of melted chocolate down the cone before it hit his hand, but seeming completely at ease as always. She wondered how he always managed to be so composed no matter what the situation, because she herself couldn't seem to settle her stomach no matter how good cookie dough ice cream covered in caramel and whipped cream with a cherry on top tasted.

In fact, Kanota had been nothing but charming from the moment they had left the school, keeping her mind occupied away from her nerves with small talk chatter and jokes that Kagome was more than happy to focus her attention. Listening to him talk, it was hard to remember that he had just joined their class only a few weeks ago, but obviously her classmates had accepted and integrated him into their social standings right away. It wasn't surprising. Kanota was funny and articulate, smart without making it nerdishly obvious, and pulled off a combination of attractiveness without effort that Kagome was sure she was not the only one who had noticed. But he had done his homework too, taking time to get to know a little bit about all the students who had offered their acquaintance. He had a quick grasp of names and tidbits of information about people, which he was able to recall as if he had grown up with each of them. Kagome remembered him saying that he had moved around a lot with his family. She wondered if he had been as popular in his old schools as he seemed to have grown at hers.

She turned her head to see his almost trademark casual gaze focused in her direction and felt her cheeks go red again. "I've been wondering about something for a while," he announced between bites of waffle cone.

"Huh?" Kagome raised an eyebrow in surprise. "What's that?"

"You don't seem like a sickly kind of girl. What illness do you have that made you miss so much school?"

Kagome froze mid lick and tried not to choke loudly. "Well, it was more like an unlucky string of things…" she said quickly with a nervous laugh, trying desperately to buy time to think some more. "Cold and flu stuff mostly, but my grandpa likes to exaggerate so some people got the wrong idea."

"Really? How serious did he get?"

"Well, I did have tuberculosis for a while, but nothing too much more serious than that," she replied with a kidding smile. "I guess I probably should have gone to school a little more than I did, but my grandpa, he's a little overprotective." Phew. Good save, and kept him from thinking she was a total cancer victim or something without having to mention anything about demons or jewel shards. "So what about you?" she redirected quickly. "What's your family like?"

"My mom died when I was pretty young so I really don't remember her much. My dad is a CEO of a fast growing company, so he's gone a lot on business. I have an older sister who watches the rest of us while he's gone."

"So why the need to move around so much, since your father's always gone anyways?"

"It's just his way I guess. We don't ask questions. I guess he just likes to keep us close, just in case." Kanota's expression went blank for the briefest of seconds, but it didn't go unnoticed by Kagome. But just as soon as the change registered in her mind Kanota's laid back demeanor was back in control again and he smiled. "I haven't minded it so much this time. This has been one of the nicer places we've lived."

"Well, you haven't seemed to have any trouble fitting in," Kagome remarked.

"Everyone here has been extremely accommodating," he said with a smile that Kagome couldn't quite read but sent a small tremor to her stomach. "By the way Kagome, I was wondering if I could ask you to do me a favor."

"A favor?" This was unexpected. "If there's something I can do to help…

"I imagine it's a long shot, it coming so soon and all, but everyone keeps talking about this dance coming up next week. I thought I'd take my chances and see if anyone had asked you yet."

It was as if time froze for a moment. At first Kagome could just stare and try to keep her mouth from falling open. The faces of Yuki, Eri, and Ayumi flashed in her mind, grinning like idiots just like they probably would when word of this got to them. She swore revenge on each one of them personally as soon as she figured out how they had managed to arrange it. Still, their constant excited chatter and invasive matchmaking schemes had gotten her somewhat excited about the whole idea of going to a school dance. Before she had become a time-traveling jewel hunter, she had fantasized for hours with her friends about attending a formal dance, and while it didn't quite have the same appeal now after all she had been through, there was no reason not to have some normal teenage experiences in her life too. Especially if the boy actually wanted to go too.

"Of course, I understand if you're already going with someone," Kanota was saying when Kagome interrupted.

"Actually, I'd be happy to go with you," she replied softly.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Inuyasha was navigating as quickly as he could through the complicated city streets while trying not to lose Kagome's scent amongst the bombardment of information hitting his nose with every breath. He was close, that he was sure of, but the anxious wrenching still plagued his stomach, something that he had long ago decided would probably not stop until he found her, so he pushed on. With every corner he turned in order to find nothing, his frustration mounted. He'd rescued Kagome countless times before. Honestly, he should be considered a master at it by this time, since she couldn't seem to keep herself out of trouble. But never had he felt so desperate to find her, and it aggravated him to no end. This would not be so difficult in the Feudal Era, that was for sure. He needed to hurry up and find Kagome and bring her back where she belonged so he wouldn't be wasting his time with this hide-and-seek business anymore.

But this is her time. This is where she belongs.

The thought hit him and caused a moment of dread. Of course she belonged with them. No one ever questioned that fact since the moment she had arrived or even during all their traveling. Sure, there had been comments about her strange clothes and all, but it was Kagome who insisted on wearing them all the time. If she didn't care that people thought she was weird then why should he care what she wore. She was going to go back to the Feudal Era and finish getting the jewel shards with him just like she said she would. Then maybe they could get on with life without him having to go rescue her five hundred years away from what he was doing.

Abruptly the wind changed, shifting the trail that he had been following and causing him to loose his track. He cursed and stopped, searching the area around him to try to recapture the scent, but he soon discovered just how complicated Kagome's world could get. The smells came from all sides, heavy, thick and pungent, filling his head with information about everything but his target. Chalking up another peg in the list of reasons to hate Kagome's time, Inuyasha stopped to try to regroup himself, pointing his nose upward and sniffing rapidly in hope of catching any sign of her. When nothing came, he cursed, clenching his fists tighter, and took off down the street again, figuring it was better to keep moving than just standing there doing nothing.

So she'll help you find the jewel shards. But what about after that? What's going to happen when there are no more jewel shards to find?

His mouth curled up to a snarl as he ran. Damn voices in his head were getting on his nerves. Why was he worrying about things that weren't pertinent to what was going on now? His only concern at the moment should be finding Kagome and destroying whatever it was that was constantly interrupting his concentration by putting her in danger. Because if there was one thing that he was certain about, it was that somehow she was still in danger, and obviously incapable of getting herself out of it.

She needed him.

He decided to take his search to the rooftops for a better view, and with a quick hop he was skipping from building to building while scanning the streets below. While the visual advantage was much greater from here, the long shadows from the sun going lower in the sky was making it harder to hone in on the details below. Switching senses, he tested the air again for any sign of her, directing all his energy and focus towards finding any hint of Kagome's presence in the air, but the massive congestion of people and objects made it difficult to pull any single scent out of the cluster. Frustrated, Inuyasha stopped abruptly at the edge of the building and closed his eyes.

"Concentrate. She has to be out there somewhere."

Drawing up on everything he knew in his subconscious to be Kagome, he tried one more time to lock on to any trace of his lost companion. "Kagome, where are you?" he mentally called out in desperation, and suddenly as if to answer, his nose twitched to the familiar scent of jasmine and honey he recognized as the prissy soap she used to clean her hair floating in the breeze. She was there. He found her. His feet moved instantaneously in response, nose twitching continuously to ensure he wouldn't lose track again. Rapidly he skimmed from each rooftop in her direction, his resolve mounting to get to her. The scent was strong. She was so close and yet…

Inuyasha stopped short at the edge of the next roof and froze. Hanging lightly on the breeze tangled with Kagome's scent was something else, something somehow familiar but just out of his recollection, as if someone had taken something recognizable and altered it slightly but just enough to remove its memorable quality. But it seemed wrong, unnatural. And he didn't have to search long to attach it to someone.

Down on the street just across from where he sat perched on the building was Kagome who seemed to be just finishing eating a small brown cylindrical cake and licking her fingers in delight, but suddenly he wasn't quite as intent upon her as he had been just minutes before. Inuyaha's focus sat completely upon the person standing next to her, someone he didn't recognize as one of Kagome's friends, and someone he already didn't like at all. He growled softly. Who was this guy, and what was he doing with Kagome? It was at that moment that another panic wave hit Inuyasha, and suddenly another thought crossed through his mind. Kagome was here, laughing and walking down the street with someone he'd never seen before. Everything seemed normal for Kagome's world. She was safe. So why wasn't the feeling of danger going away?

It was at that moment that Inuyasha looked down to see a white haired boy lean in close to whisper something softly in Kagome's ear before sliding her chin around to meet his lips with hers.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Kagome wasn't quite sure what had happened after she had finished her ice cream, but she was still slightly dizzy as a result. Kanota had left her to walk the rest of the way home by herself, apologizing for not being able to go with her like a gentleman. She remembered him looking slightly unnerved after asking what time it was, explaining they had spent a little too much time at the ice cream parlor and his father strictly enforced curfews on school days, something he had also assured her wouldn't be a problem the night of the dance. But it was the part after that that had left Kagome speechless.

The pair had reached the point in their path to separate, and Kagome had just finished thanking him again for the ice cream when Kanota's tone got a bit quieter. "Kagome, can I ask you for one more thing?"

"Sure," she replied. "What is it?"

"I'd like to take you out again, before the dance. Maybe Sunday for lunch if you don't have too much work to do."

She wanted to, she really did, but her prior plans sat forefront in her mind. "I'm sorry, I have to go away this weekend and I won't be back until Sunday evening."

Kanota nodded in understanding. "You're probably pretty popular. I'm lucky to have gotten this time with you."

Again for a moment, Kanota had looked startled, his smile flattening for the first time and his demeanor slightly more cautious and his attention not quite fully there. She hoped she hadn't upset him. "Wait," Kagome said quickly, not wanting to discourage him, "would you maybe want to meet for lunch at school? I know it's not quite the same, but …" She flashed him a small hopeful smile.

"I'd like that," he smiled back, his mannerisms back to normal again, and then he had leaned in close to her. "Because I really like spending time with you," she heard him whisper before she suddenly found herself being warmly kissed and about a million tingly pins flashing all over her body. "What's he doing?" she wondered dumbfounded. "Kanota couldn't possibly like me! He's way too cool and sophisticated!" But the moment seemed to prove otherwise as she felt Kanota brush the hair away from her face and backed away slightly, his clear blue eyes drilling straight into hers. "I was hoping you felt the same."

Dumbfounded, Kagome nodded, not quite knowing how to formulate words at the current moment, and watched Kanota smile grow. He was right. She did like spending time with him. He was funny, smart, had great anecdotes from many of the different schools he attended, and she had not once been insulted or called any names the whole time. Unlike most of the time with Inuyashya she thought with a frown. It was nice spending a day out and not ending up in an argument or molested in some way when hanging out with a boy. Still, the thought of Inuyasha lingered behind in the back of her mind, and something in her seemed to sense that he was close by. But that was impossible. Inuyasha was in the Feudal Era with everyone else looking for Kikiyo. He wouldn't have any reason to be here.

She and Kanota had parted soon after that, but Kagome's mind was still running non-stop. The dance was already next weekend, and she had no dress, no shoes, had to figure out what to do with her hair…the list went on. When was she going to have time to do all this, especially since she was planning on being away from anything even mildly resembling a mall for the entire weekend? Maybe her mother could do some shopping for her. She always seemed to get excited when Kagome decided to do things in the present. Kagome smiled. It was going to be fun getting all dressed up and having dinner out, and she would get to spend the entire evening with Kanota too. Already she could feel her stomach fill with wonderfully nervous spasms. Suddenly the present day wasn't seeming so boring after all.

The sun was continuing to creep lower in the sky, and a crisp breeze was beginning to cut through the warm air as she walked towards the Higureshi temple, reminding her that she needed to get going if she wanted to get to Kaete's village before sunset. Smiling and humming to herself, she picked up her pace, thinking about her friends and what they might be doing right now. Had they found Kikiyo yet? It had been three weeks. Inuyasha and the others had to have located her by now. What had they been doing for all this time? "I guess I'll find out soon," she thought happily. "Someone at Kaete's village will have some news for me."

It seemed as soon as she started thinking about them, the flash hit again, and Kagome stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. "That feeling again, just like before when I was with Kanota." She shook her head, trying to regroup. "I can feel him. Inuyasha. He's here, close. But…how? How do I know this? I've never sensed anything like this before."

As if it was responding to her thoughts as well, the breeze shifted, blowing from behind like gentle fingers lifting her head upward, and suddenly she understood the triggers that had been firing within her all afternoon as she instantly identified the shock of red cloth against the pink and white of the cherry blossoms. She froze, eyes wide in amazement, not sure what it all meant, and not sure what to do. "What's going on? He looks so serious. Did something happen?" For what seemed like an eternity Inuyasha wouldn't move, his golden eyes transfixed on her like he was also trying to figure out what to do. Then, slowly, Inuyasha folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the trunk of the tree, eyes narrowed and still locked on her. She could feel his anger pounding against her in waves, making her knees tremble slightly despite her confidence that he would never harm her, but there was something else she could sense from somewhere deep within him, something that made her heart want to break.

"Inuyasha," she managed weakly. "What…what are you doing here?"

At first she wasn't sure he was going to answer, not sure that he could by the way she was feeling, but Inuyasha finally broke his stare and turned his head away to look towards where the sun was just beginning to disappear beyond the horizon. When he spoke, his voice was soft, barely audible, but Kagome could undeniably discern the malice that his words carried with them.

"I thought you said you were here to finish some stupid test," he said slowly, "but I guess you've really got other things on your mind."

………………………………………………………………………………………………

A few miles away Kanota was contemplating this new turn of events. The hanyou's ability to cross the time barrier was troublesome, and his ignorance of this fact had almost exposed him had he not noticed his presence in time and for his quick thinking to alter his scent before he was identified. It had not been his intention to allow his existence to be exposed to anyone from the Feudal Era, but now he was beginning to rethink his original strategy. In fact, if his assumptions were correct, the half-breed was probably doing most of his job for him right now without even realizing it after the scene he witnessed. This could definitely be used to his advantage. With a smug smile, Kanota continued on, content that everything was progressing even better than he had expected.

I've always wanted Inuyasha to have a taste of his own medicine for all the times Kagome's endured walking in on him and Kikiyo. So just how is he going to take this new bit of news? You'll have to find out next time, true believers! Just send all rants and raves my way!