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The Breakup
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"So, today we're going over how to use a bus pass and how to use the subway!" Asora chirped happily as she and the ebony haired Inuyasha walked down the street, "Oh, I always love field trips don't you?"
"Sure," Inuyasha chuckled nervously. These lessons weren't all that bad but they managed to make him feel stupid all the same. Still he was proud of himself that he officially knew how to access the Internet, make a phone call, use most every appliance the Higuarshi's owned and even came to realization that his human form needed low prescription reading glasses. Probably his demon form too if he was really being honest but it wasn't really necessary to read a bunch in that form so that knowledge didn't bother him at all. All he cared about was making sure he was able to fit into this world in every way and if that meant he needed little glass things to read then he was going to use them god dammit. The girl was surprisingly not condescending in her lessons at all. She was all smiles and giggles and powder blue everything. He'd never seen her sneeze but he was pretty sure that if she did, glitter would be expelled and not snot.
"We're going to get off at the fourth stop on the subway," Asora prattled on gaily as they began their descent into the underground, "I need you to order two meals at Wacdonalds and pay for it using cash, okay?"
Groaning inwardly, Inuyahsa sighed and nodded. Math was hard and while he was getting better, pressure made an already difficult subject worse. Especially when it involved currency he didn't know existed until a few days ago.
"Oh, don't look so put out! Geez, you'd think I'd've asked you to fly to the moon," the pigtailed woman snorted as she held out his card, "Okay, so swipe your card and wait for me on the other side."
After a few seconds of Inuyasha observing everyone else to make sure he wasn't about to make a fool out of himself, he swallowed his nerves and made his way through the entry. As he waited for the quirky little girl to make her way over, a man suddenly tapped him on his shoulder.
"Excuse me," a young ebony haired woman asked quietly, "Don't I know you from somewhere?"
Shaking his head, Inuyasha opened his mouth to respond in the negative when Asora came rushing up and grabbed his hand.
"Sorry! Gotta run!" she called over her shoulder at the woman whose eyes widened slightly before a strange looking passed over her face and she pulled out her phone. Giggling awkwardly, Asora glanced back to see Inuyasha staring at the woman and began walking just that much faster. That was close, too close. At least with that one, it was still someone she could trust. Although she had to admit, it seemed like a really stupid idea to have taken him out at all without giving notice to the pack.
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As Kagome's soft snores filled the cave, Shiori was making a concerted effort to stay awake but was failing miserably. She too it would seem never slept on the moonless night and it usually wasn't a problem. However, after having run who knows how far to reach them, she was having to fight tooth and nail to overcome the exhaustion coursing through her veins. When she huffed in frustration, the demon knew he couldn't ignore her struggles any longer. Sighing heavily, Inuyasha moved further into the cave to sit beside her against the damp stone wall and lolled his head towards her.
"So," he whispered quietly, "Why did you run away when you knew this time was coming up? What were you thinking?"
"I didn't want her to find out about this," the small girl whispered back as she began idly braiding and unbraiding a section of her mouse brown hair for lack of something better to do, "and I knew that, uh, you guys needed to know what she was doing. I was just going to hide until morning but I should've known you would've been able to sniff me out. It's not that I didn't trust you, it was…"
"No one other than your mother knows you have a time like this. I figured as much. I was the same way back before I met Kagome. I understand your reasoning but we're going to protect you okay?" Inuyasha sighed as he pulled the small girl into his lap, "Now come here, you need to sleep. Nothing is going to hurt you so long as I'm here and you need your rest."
At first, tension radiated off the girl as she stiffly sat in his lap, her hands curled tightly against her chest. Slowly through, as his claws gently ran though her hair, she relaxed with a tiny sigh. Swallowing thickly, Shiori hesitantly rested her head on his shoulder and adjusted herself to be more comfortable. In no time at all, her breathing evened out and her heartrate slowed as Inuyasha gently rocked the small girl to sleep. Leaning his head back against the stone, the demon's crimson eyes diligently watched over both his wards as his ears stayed on high alert for any signs of danger.
And that is how Kagome found them a few hours later when she woke a few minutes before dawn.
