Disclaimer: You're saying I have to say I don't own Inuyasha? Can I not and say I did?
A/N And I'm back! Again. As my break draws to a close... *sniff*
Oh, well! I am just as hyper as ever, which I view as a good thing, 'cause you can never be too hyper! ^________^
Ahem, anyways. Yes, the future doesn't look terribly bright for Kagome now, does it? Heh, heh, heh...read on to find out.
The consequences, Liza-Lizo? I'm not at liberty to divulge such information at this time... Don't worry, you'll most likely find out next chapter! ^_^
And yes, Fiery Love, this will be a complete Kouga/Ayame pairing, 'cause I've planned it from the start and I don't want them to be left out of finding their one true love. ^_~
And I just want to mention a few things about Miroku. I will try to make him somewhat more serious, but you guys will have to keep a few things in mind. He is slightly younger in my fic than he is on the show, his death is not at hand, there are no demons or enchantments to explain or be knowledgeable about, Inuyasha doesn't need love advice (as much) and life is pretty much going his way. Therefore, due to those reasons, he will also most likely have a tendency to be a little less serious than on the show. I'll do my best, but I don't want him to be out of character in relation to the setting of MY story.
*Sigh* I SUPPOSE I could dodge you on the roads, Angel Joy. But you'd have to hold a sign up or something with your name on it so I know it's you. ^_~ Way to be Canadian!
Yes, winters are long and cold up here, lilacks. We had some REALLY cold days this winter where I live, and snow still came down this morning.
Thanks for the pics, MoonLightWolf and Kogi Chan! I looked at them all so thankies muchos! Look for my email/messenger info in the bottom A/N 'cause this one's getting way too long! ^_~
Well...on with the chapter!
~*~
"Did you that most toothpaste contains antifreeze?"
"Amazing."
"And that most lipsticks contain fish scales?"
"I would want to know this, why...?"
"Did you know that most car horns honk in the key of F?"
"Never really wanted to..."
"And that teenagers say the word 'like' on an average of two hundred and fifty times a day?"
"And yet another useless fact."
Kagome sighed, exasperated. "Are you always this difficult?! Honestly, I'm just trying to start some conversation. You could at least help me out here!"
Inuyasha shrugged. "I'm not really in the mood for senseless chatter."
Kagome fumed. "Listen, you!" She turned to him on the chairlift and yanked on two locks of his silver hair.
"Ow!"
"Don't you insult me! I don't care what happened at that workshop, but you're not there anymore, so stop brooding about it! Cheer up and stop giving me the cold shoulder!" Kagome shouted in his face.
Inuyasha pried her grip from his hair, straightened, and crossed his arms. "Fine," he sulked.
After a few minutes of complete silence, Kagome spoke up, irritated, "And your attitude would be changing...when?"
"When I get away from you," Inuyasha grumbled.
"And there you go again!" Kagome said, throwing her hands up. "If you don't stop, I'll just go back to my condo!"
"You can't just up and go back!" Inuyasha snarled. "You have to stay here!"
"What for?!"
"Uh...so you can keep me company!" Inuyasha shot back.
"Is that all I'm good for?!" Kagome yelled. "Besides, you're not exactly being very good company yourself right now!"
"Stop getting on my case! I'm in a bad mood!"
"How bad can a bunch of kids be?!"
Inuyasha growled. "If only you knew..."
"I would if you would tell me!"
"Forget it," Inuyasha said as they disembarked from the chairlift.
"Fine," Kagome huffed. "I'm going back then!"
"No!" Inuyasha said, getting desperate. "I'll, uh...um...er...continue your ski lesson!"
"Being as big a jerk as your being right now?" Kagome asked, eyeing him carefully.
"No...?" Inuyasha said uncertainly.
"Good answer! Let's go!" Kagome said, exuberant once again, and skied for the nearest run.
Inuyasha watched her go with a miffed expression. "Girls..." was the best answer he could come up with as he followed her.
~*~
"What are you two doing here?" Kouga asked Sango and Miroku as he and Ayame entered the boys' condo.
"Well..." Miroku began.
Sango cut him off with a glare. "Remember the roller blade accident?"
Miroku cringed. "You were just as much at fault as I was, Sango."
"Uh..." Ayame said as she and Kouga looked uncertainly between the two.
"Perhaps it's better left unsaid," Miroku said. "But, all kidding aside, we went to get my present for Kagome's birthday, and we just recently got back. You?"
"Same," Kouga said casually, flopping on the couch beside Sango.
"Do you think she's beginning to suspect anything?" Sango asked nervously.
Ayame giggled. "Not likely. Especially after Kouga, master liar extraodinaire, spun a tale so believable as to completely cloud her judgement and sense of viability," Ayame said with a flourish.
"Hey! It was a good excuse...well, okay, maybe it sucked...but it still worked!" Kouga protested.
"What was it?" Sango asked in confusion.
Ayame couldn't stop giggling and so with an annoyed look shot her way, Kouga explained, "When Kagome asked why Inuyasha disappeared, I couldn't exactly say he went off to buy her a birthday present, so I came up with an excuse. I told her that he went off to run a top secret paper maché workshop for kids."
Sango and Miroku stared at him a moment before, "And...she believed you?" Miroku asked.
"Well...she was a bit sceptical at first, but when Inuyasha backed me up-"
"Inuyasha backed you up?" Sango asked in disbelief.
"Well...sorta...he had no choice, really..."
"Oi..." Sango said, rubbing her temples. "We're gone for just an hour or so and you come up with this...!"
"Yeah, well...I bet you couldn't have done any better!" Kouga retorted.
"How about he went in for some sort of meeting or something? Like with Myouga?" Sango suggested.
"Oh, well...whatever," was Kouga's clever reply.
"We'd better head back out now, though," Miroku said. "Kagome may have bought that, but if we just suddenly all disappear and never come back, then what will she think?"
"Besides, right now she's stuck being alone with Inuyasha, who's in a decidedly bad mood," Ayame spoke up.
Everyone glanced uneasily at one another, then shuddered.
"Let's go!"
"Poor girl!"
"Gotta save her!"
"I wonder if she's still alive...?"
~*~
"Good. You're starting to carve nicely. Now get your hands forward, stay over your skis, and keep your body facing down the hill instead of turning it in the direction your skis are going," Inuyasha instructed.
Kagome tried to process all of this new information. "Oookay," she said as she pushed off. She skied down, trying to keep everything he had taught her in her mind and applying it.
She could already feel a change in her skiing from before Inuyasha had begun to teach her. Even though he was often nothing more than a jerk, she couldn't help but feel extremely grateful towards him. This new way of skiing was a lot more enjoyable than whatever she'd been doing before and it gave her an amazing sense of freedom.
Reaching the bottom, Kagome skidded to a halt by swinging her skis around to the side and waited for Inuyasha. She watched him fly down the hill, once again marvelling at his skill.
When he reached her, he stopped and lifted his goggles up to place them on his forehead. "Alright, that should do it for today," he said, indicating the nearby condos. "Let's go in."
Kagome nodded happily and skied with him towards the boys' condo. It seemed that Inuyasha's bad mood had dissipated when they had begun the lessons; his love of skiing had caused him to forget whatever had been plaguing him previously.
Once Inuyasha had changed into some normal clothes and shoes, they headed over to the girls' condo, Kagome skiing and Inuyasha walking. They reached their destination and headed inside. Kagome changed while Inuyasha flipped through some channels on the TV. Kagome came out a few minutes later and flopped down beside him. He currently had it on a documentary of himself.
"Inuyasha Dareshi is currently tied for first in FIS points with Naraku Querei. It will be a tough competition and both competitors will have to be on their toes. Dareshi currently hasn't lost a single race, an amazing feat for a skier so young against so many older and more experienced racers. Perhaps this is a sign that he will follow his father's example and maybe even surpass-"
The voice abruptly cut off as Inuyasha hastily changed the channel.
"Hey!" Kagome protested. "I was listening to that!"
"Yeah, well, it was boring anyway," Inuyasha said, attempting to appear nonchalant.
"What was it saying about your father?" she pressed.
"Nothing," Inuyasha said shortly.
"Hmph," Kagome said, crossing her arms and glaring back at the TV screen. "Hey! It may have been boring to you, but at least it was better than the Discovery Channel! Give me that remote!"
"No!" Inuyasha refused as Kagome began reaching for the device in his hand.
"Give it to me!" she said, practically falling on him as he held it out of her reach.
"Ack! No! Mine!" He started falling sideways on the couch, Kagome on top of him.
"Give!"
"No!
"Mine!"
"Mine!"
"Let me have it!"
"No! Min-"
Inuyasha was cut off abruptly when the door of the condo opened and their four other friends stomped in.
"Where have you be-oh..." Sango's irritated expression soon turned to understanding as she took in Kagome practically lying on Inuyasha on the couch.
"Ah," Miroku said, looking from them to the TV where the Discovery Channel was still on. "It appears that they are taking after that song that talks about being mammals and doing it like they do on the Discovery Channel."
Kagome looked down and locked eyes with Inuyasha before they both scooted backwards and to opposite ends of the couch, blushing furiously.
"Stupid lech," Inuyasha muttered. "We were just fighting over the remote."
"Speaking of which!" Kagome said, instantly forgetting the embarrassing moment. "You still haven't given it to me!"
"Like I will!" Inuyasha shot back.
"Hey!" Kagome got up and started towards him.
Inuyasha saw her coming and leapt up from the couch, hastily retreating.
"Come back here!" Kagome said, running after him.
"Not likely!" Inuyasha said, laughing as he led her in circles around the couch.
"When do you think the wedding will be?" Sango asked innocently to the others.
Kagome skidded to a halt and turned to glare at her. "Why you...!" She charged at Sango and another tussle broke out between the two.
As Ayame attempted to pry Kagome off of Sango, the phone rang beside Inuyasha.
"Um...your phone's ringing," he said stupidly and pointing at it.
"So...answer it..." Ayame panted as she redoubled her efforts. Kouga and Miroku seemed content to watch.
"Okay..." Inuyasha said, reaching for the phone. "Hello?" He had to hold the receiver away from his ear as the loud voice of a woman screeched across the line.
"Who is this?!"
"Uh...Inuyasha Dareshi," Inuyasha responded.
"Oh, so YOU'RE the one, eh?!"
"Uh..."
"What are you doing in my daughter's condo!?"
"Uh...hanging out...?"
"Who do you think you are, young man?!"
"Inuyasha Dareshi."
"Oh, a smart one, I see. Let me talk to my daughter!"
"Daughter?"
"Kagome! The one you're about to smooch in all those photos!"
"Oh, Kagome... Wait! What?!"
"Let me talk to her!"
"But-"
"Now!"
Inuyasha fumed silently and shoved the phone in Kagome's direction, finally taking in all the stares he was receiving from the other occupants of the room.
"For me?" Kagome asked meekly, getting up off of Sango. She shuffled forward, reaching an arm out for the phone. "My-my mom?"
Inuyasha nodded. "Go nuts. I think she saw the tabloids."
"Great..." Kagome muttered. Then, into the phone, she said brightly, "Hi, mom!"
"Who is that boy?!"
"Oh, him? He's just a boy I met out here, along with his friends, Kouga and Miroku. They've been hanging out with Ayame, Sango and I for the past, uh, four days. Inuyasha saved me from a groomer and an icy hill filled with moguls. These reporters are following him and Kouga, though, 'cause they're really good ski racers and they're going to be in this big ski race competition next week. So they follow us around they take all of these pictures of us when it looks like there's something going on between us when they're really isn't and then they put them in tabloids and make it seem like we're a couple! So there's really nothing going on and you probably just saw one of the fake tabloids, but there's nothing to worry about, 'cause nothing's going on!" Kagome finished with a false smile.
"Oh..." There was a pause on the other line. "Well...Why haven't you phoned me?! Why was it I had to find out about you hanging out with these boys through tabloids?!"
"Uh...heh, heh, heh...I guess I kinda, uh...forgot?" Kagome said with a nervous laugh.
"Are you sure nothing's going on between you and that young man, Kagome?" her mother's voice rang clear through the condo. "How did you get so distracted as to forget to phone your own mother?"
"Mom!" Kagome protested at the insinuation, more pink tinting her cheeks. "They're just friends! It's just that we've been having a lot of fun and so I kinda...yeah..."
"Oh," Mrs. Higurashi's voice seemed to hold almost a disappointed note. "Well, he seems like a nice young man," she added helpfully.
"Wha...?" Kagome said, the pink on her cheeks darkening as she pointedly avoided looking at Inuyasha. "But I thought you said..."
"Oh, I never said I disapproved," her mother said cheerfully.
"Huh?"
"I'm sorry it came across that way; it's just that I was a little upset over how you failed to call me and mention it to me. But I don't mind as long as you PHONE me in the future and let me know how things are going. I don't want to have to learn about my daughter's private life from media gossip instead of her own mouth!"
"Okay, mom," Kagome responded meekly. "But Inuyasha and I are just-"
"Yes, yes, I'm sure, dear. Now you run along, and don't forget to phone me on your birthday. You're having a good time, yes?"
"The best, mom! It is sooo fun!" Kagome squealed. "And Inuyasha's giving me ski lessons and this hill is so awesome and this was the best birthday present ever!"
"I'm glad you're enjoying it. Now you're probably holding up your boyfriend and his friends now, so I'll just say good-bye and talk to you on your birthday!"
"But, mom, he's not my-"
"Bye!" There was a click and the phone went dead.
Kagome slowly replaced the phone on the receiver and turned to her friends. Inuyasha was looking anywhere than at her, his cheeks just as luminous, and the others were doing their best not to laugh. It was safe to say they were failing miserably, judging by the fact that Sango was still on the ground, this time laughing her head off, Ayame was leaning on Kouga for support while Miroku leaned on the wall, and Kouga had tears in his eyes as he pointed at the mortified "couple."
Inuyasha and Kagome mechanically walked over to the couch, sat down and stared straight ahead as their friends tried desperately to smother their laughter.
When their friends' laughter died down to mere random giggles and chuckles, Kagome said firmly, "Ayame. Dinner. You're making it. Your movie. We're watching it."
Still giggling, Ayame stumbled into her room to retrieve one of her movies that she had brought. She came back out a few moments later and stuck the tape in the VCR. Before starting it, however, she led the other laughing individuals into the kitchen to prepare a meal. After eating the spaghetti they made, everyone trudged back into the TV room to watch the movie.
"What movie?" Miroku asked as he made a point to sit beside Sango when she plopped down on a couch separate from the one Inuyasha and Kagome were sitting on together.
Ayame shrugged. "My mom got it for me just before we left. Some old thriller."
"Sounds cool," Sango said.
Kouga and Ayame sat down on the couch with Sango and Miroku seeing as it was the more spacious one out of the two.
The movie started and soon jumped into the main action. When the suspenseful music started up the first time and the killer leapt out of the shadows, Kagome let out a squeal and latched onto Inuyasha's arm. He glanced down at it, but didn't mention anything. ...Until she began to cut off his circulation.
"Uh, Kagome? Kagome?!" he said, waving his other hand in front of her face to get her attention off of the murder in front of her. "I can't feel my arm anymore."
"Oh! Sorry," she apologized, loosening her hold, but not removing it. They turned back to the screen.
At the second murder, Sango reached out without thinking and grasped Miroku's hand. When she realized what she had done, she began to withdraw it, but was stopped when Miroku squeezed her hand gently. She looked up at him in surprise and he gave her a genuine smile that made her heart skip a beat. Maybe her hand could stay joined with his a moment longer...
Meanwhile, Kouga and Ayame could barely contain their laughter.
"Oh, oh!" Kouga chortled. "Here comes the ominous music again! Come on, you just don't keep walking when that music comes on. I mean, you KNOW you're in trouble when it starts up. ...You're not turning back? Oh, well, that's it! You're dead!" he said, throwing up his hands as if the woman on the screen was a lost cause. Sure enough, the killer soon jumped her and slit her throat. Him and Ayame burst out laughing again while the others tried their best to ignore them and the morbid sight on the screen.
"No, no! Don't go in there!" Ayame cried at the TV. "It's dark and deserted! Obviously you're not going to live to see another day if you do! Oh, and there's the music! ...And there's the killer...oh, and look! You're dead... Hey! That killer's probably that dude who got ripped off in the beginning, out for vengeance."
"Stands to reason," Kouga agreed, then laughed with her when the ominous music rose to a crescendo.
As the movie drew to a close, it was discovered that the killer was indeed who Ayame had predicted. As she stopped the tape and began to rewind it, she stood up and stretched. "Ahhh...that was a good movie, eh, guys? I needed a good laugh."
She was greeted with glares coming from everyone but Kouga.
Meanwhile, Miroku was attempting to pry his crippled hand from Sango's death grip. "Ahhh...you're stronger than you look, my dear Sango," he said as he finally succeeded and looked at his white, bloodless hand.
Sango saw the result of her constant squeezing and gasped. "Oh, my gosh! Sorry Miroku! I didn't mean-pervert!" she screeched as she felt his good hand feel her up as she was distracted. "Urgh! You're impossible!" She slapped him and stomped up to her room, muttering, "And things were going so good, too..."
Kagome didn't even make a comment as she passed, still cuddled up next to Inuyasha and latched onto him like a security item, her face buried in his shoulder.
"Uh...Kagome?" Inuyasha said as he looked down at her girl. He blinked. "Kagome?" When she didn't respond, he poked her in the head.
"Ahhhhhh!! ...Huh? Oh... Oh! It's over...?" she said, looking up at him.
"Yeah..." Inuyasha said. "You okay?"
She smiled up at him. "Yup; I'm okay. But I think I might go to bed now...assuming I can get to sleep, that is. Thanks for the...you know..." she finished awkwardly, indicating his rumpled arm.
"Uh...no problem..."
Suddenly, they both remembered Mrs. Higurashi's words and the discomfort returned full blast.
"Uh..."
"So..."
"I guess, um..."
"Good night...?"
"Yeah, good night..."
"I'll, uh, see ya tomorrow, then."
Inuyasha smirked at this. "Oh, yes. I'll definitely see you tomorrow. And we'll have lots of...fun."
Kagome watched suspiciously as he made his way toward the condo door with Kouga and Miroku. "Just what is he up to...?"
~*~
A/N Well, that's that chapter. Perhaps not quite as much humour, but maybe the beginning of new relationships, eh? Heh, heh, heh...definitely watch out for the next two chapters. They shall be masterpieces...
Oh, boy. *snicker* I couldn't resist the scene with Kagome threatening to 'go back' and Inuyasha not wanting to let her. Remind you of a certain scenario?
I'll just warn you now that I'll most likely continue to insinuate things that relate back to the show. I've already done it a few times (ex. "That's got to be the fastest boy I've ever seen!" -reference to Kouga's ridiculous speed with his shikon shard legs) and there are some opportunities I can't resist. Tell me if you can spot them as we go. ^_~ It'll be like a game!
Okay, I just got Yahoo messenger and my ID for that is super_ceech@yahoo.ca. Haven't tried it out yet so here's hoping it works! *crosses fingers* If it doesn't work, I'll try making an account at yahoo.com, but for now, that's what it is. I'm also attempting to get my MSN back up and running (I haven't been using it for so long, my ID's kinda expired), but I need to meet some requirements on my computer first so not sure when that'll happen. I'll let you know when I get it back, though.
And that goes for anyone wanting to talk to me on that messenger, 'cause I luv talking to new people! ^____^ Just stick my ID on your list and give me a shout. I'd love to hear from you! ^_^
I also have some email addresses you can contact; three to be exact. -_-' The one I use the most frequently is goldenretriever6@yahoo.ca, but I also have super_ceech@yahoo.ca and satanika66@hotmail.com. So just contact me 'cause it'd be uber neat to talk to all of you as well. ^_~
Oh, and watch out for a fun little one-shot I'm hoping on getting out today. It is the ultimate alternate ending to Inuyasha. Naraku's been defeated and it comes down to the choice between Kikyo and Kagome. Who will Inuyasha choose? It's a humour/parody and it'll be unlike anything anyone else has done. It's the way I think it should end, lol. It's gonna be funny, not dramatic, so I hope you check it out. ^_~
Wow; I think this A/N is even longer than the one at the top. Oh, and don't worry about sending me longer reviews, people. I love them the best and, as you can see, I'm a master rambler myself. Eh heh...well, talk to ya later! Hopefully the next chapter will be out sometime next weekend. ^_^ Buh-byez!