Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. But I now own a new AC ligament!
A/N Okey, dokey...I'm alive! Thanks for all of your support, guys, it made me feel a whole lot better! I made it through the dreaded surgery and now I can look forward to a loooong recovery... It wasn't too bad, I guess...the worst part was getting the IV thingy into my hand...that hurt...but I won't gross you all out with the lovely details. I shall instead write a lovely chapter while I remain somewhat immobile and overall restricted from normal movement. After all, what else do I have to do?
Thank you, its easy as abc, for being my 500th reviewer!!! Wow...I'm halfway to a thousand...that just boggles my mind. Thank you guys; I love you all!
Let's see...if you are once again offended by my portrayal of the snowboarders, let me direct you to my author's note of chapter 7. I believe I already explained myself on this subject, so please don't take offence. I'm not talking about ALL snowboarders here, just these particular ones. After all, they're made up of all the minor bad guys (excluding Nazuna) of Inuyasha, so what do you expect?
And I have seen like ten thousand different spellings of each name in Inuyasha, so I just picked one for Hojo and I'm going with it. It might be spelt Houjou, but I personally like the look of Hojo better and I've already used it for one chapter, so that's how I'm gonna use it for the rest of the fic. Okey dokey?
And, for the disclaimer from last chapter (if you didn't understand it and were wondering what it meant) a fairly accurate translation would be, "I don't own Inuyasha. I'm not his owner. And if you can understand this, congratulations."
Oh, and I forgot to mention in my last A/N that I finally got my MSN Messenger reinstalled! So now you can either talk to me on Yahoo! Messenger with my email being superceechyahoo.ca, on AIM with my screen name being Super Ceech, or on MSN Messenger with my email being satanika66hotmail.com. Come chat with me! I love talking to you guys!
..:/:..
"And then, when we analyzed the molecular structure, we realized it was a trans-isomer, not a cis-isomer!" Hojo finished his story proudly.
"You don't say..." Kagome supplied in a monotone voice. Her chin was resting in her palm as she gazed out over the ski hill with glazed over eyes, only half-listening to Hojo's endless stories as they ascended the mountain in a chairlift.
"But I do! And I can tell you, it was a great shock to all of us!"
"I'll bet it was..." Kagome replied, eyes half-shut. Why, oh, WHY did she leave her friends in order to spend the rest of the day with the most energetic yet most boring boy on earth?! What EVER possessed her to-oh, right. INUYASHA. Stupid jerk, being so rude and mean to poor-boring-Hojo who was just trying to be friendly...in a slightly frightening manner...but that wasn't the point! The point WAS was that Inuyasha had no right to say those things, and she wasn't about to forgive him for them any time soon!
"Don't you agree?" Hojo's voice broke through her thoughts and she slightly panicked, realizing she had no idea what he was talking about.
"Um...how could I not?" Kagome responded with a nervous giggle.
"Exactly. Pig's liver is SO delicious with basil," Hojo chattered happily.
Kagome gagged. "P-pig's liver?! With basil...?"
"I know! Ah, we're so much alike, Kagome, it's unbelievable!" Hojo smiled at her brightly.
"Unbelievable is right..." Kagome muttered under her breath.
..:/:..
"Oh, stop sulking and do something about it!" Sango shouted exasperated. Inuyasha ignored her and continued to brood, arms crossed and eyes glaring at the table before him.
"Inuyasha, we know you feel bad about-"
"Keh!" Inuyasha spat, cutting Miroku off. "I don't feel bad about anything!"
"Could've fooled me..." Ayame muttered. Inuyasha growled in response.
"Inuyasha, we understand you were jealous-" Sango started.
"Jealous?! Ha! I was NOT jealous!" Inuyasha protested angrily.
"My apologies... I forgot you were naturally that much of an ass," Sango shot back at him.
Inuyasha abruptly stood up and slammed his hands on the table. "That's it! I don't need this! I'm takin' off!" With that, he stormed out of the lodge, slamming the door behind him.
The others stood, watching him go while shaking their heads. "He's hopeless," Kouga confirmed what everyone was thinking.
"Stupid...stupids!" Inuyasha sputtered, not able to think up a better insult for his friends. "Who needs their advice anyways?! They don't know anything! Jealous?! As if!
"Still...Kagome's all mad at me now...but it wasn't my fault! That stupid Hojo freak was hitting on her and I was only protecting her from him! 'I just want to meet new people and make new friends' my ass...
"Why'd she get so mad anyway? He deserved it...and he probably didn't even realize I was insulting him! Stupid oblivious... And she liked it! She giggled and simpered at his stupid comments! What was with her, anyways?"
Inuyasha flopped down on the chairlift he was boarding and glared gloomily at the hill below him. "Now she probably won't talk to me...'cause I yelled at her...and if I hang out with my other friends, they'll just tell me that I was jealous and that I should apologize... Who needs their advice anyways?!" he repeated angrily. "They don't know anything...I mean, she can't ignore me forever...or can she? Ack, stupid girl...I don't know what I should do!"
An old Chinese man turned around on the chairlift in front of him. "Will you shut up already? Just go and apologize, stupid!"
Inuyasha gave the man a dead panned look. "Thanks, old man," he said dryly.
'Maybe I should...' Inuyasha thought. 'I mean, then she wouldn't be mad anymore, right? But I suck at apologizing...'
A few minutes later, his chairlift reached the top of the mountain and disembarked. "Now where to...?" he muttered to himself.
He started forward but stopped suddenly. He saw in front of him Kagome sitting alone on a bench, looking thoroughly dejected. He felt a pang of guilt and decided to go talk to her, whether he would come out of the encounter alive or not.
..:/:..
"Oh, look! We're here! Let's do some more skiing!" Hojo said excitedly.
Kagome groaned. Not more "skiing." She wasn't sure if she could take much more of his attempts at skiing before she screamed out of pure frustration. However, she plastered a large, fake smile and said cheerfully to Hojo, "Great! What hill should we go on next?"
Hojo grinned back at her. "How about that one?" he suggested, pointing at green circle.
"How did I know?" Kagome muttered to herself.
Hojo started awkwardly down the hill, almost snow plowing the entire time. Almost immediately, he caught an edge that imbalanced him and threw him to the ground. Kagome sighed and skied down to stop beside him. Hojo pushed himself up, laughing all the time. "Ah, what a fall, eh Kagome?" Hojo said jovially. "That's what skiing is all about! Learning from your falls and improving your skills because of them!"
Kagome looked at him skeptically. 'Funny,' she thought. 'I could have sworn that skiing was about avoiding the falls...' Kagome looked down at her companion. 'And is this guy for real? We're on a bunny hill! One of the easiest hills on this mountain! I can't believe I somehow got myself into this situation...'
"Are you having as much fun as I am?" Hojo asked, standing up and brushing the snow off of him.
"Uh...sure am!" Kagome said with fake enthusiasm. "But...I just realized something I forgot! And...uh...I have to go before it's too late!"
"Oh! I'll come with you!" Hojo suggested.
"No!" Kagome said, panicked. "I mean, no...uh, I'm meeting someone and we're, um, going...somewhere..."
Hojo looked crestfallen. "Oh...a boyfriend?"
Kagome laughed. "No, no, just a friend...that is a girl...we're, um, going shopping."
"Oh, okay!" Hojo had regained his cheerfulness. "Well, maybe we could ski together again another day then!"
"Oh...um...maybe we could..." Kagome said reluctantly. "But, I gotta go right now! See ya!"
Kagome sped off down the hill before Hojo could get in another word. Making sure she was out of his sight, she took a chairlift back up to the top of the mountain. Looking around at the other happy skiers at the top, Kagome sighed. She spotted an empty bench off to the side and skated over to it. She flopped down and pushed her goggles up onto the top of her head. She stuck her poles into the snow next to her and looked down at her skis.
She felt so alone now...and lost. She knew her way around the mountain by now, but without her friends, it seemed so much larger and not as fun as it was with them. The mountain seemed ominous and crowded by unknown strangers. She felt alone, but she thought it was better than hanging out with Hojo any longer. She had only stomped off with him in the first place because she was angry with Inuyasha. Stupid Inuyasha...why was he so mean? Why did he practically bite Hojo's head off? He didn't do anything but be really nice...
Oh, she refused to think about it anymore! But...if she didn't think about that, she was forced to think about how alone she was again...oh, the joys of walking out on your friends for an airheaded, pretty-boy...
She was aware of someone plopping down on the bench beside her. "This seat taken?" a rough, familiar voice inquired.
Kagome's head shot up and looked in surprise at Inuyasha himself. He wasn't looking at her; rather at his own skis, and he seemed to be avoiding her eyes. Kagome collected her wits quickly and looked away. "I suppose it is now," she said coldly. "Though I'm not at all sure I'm happy with who it's occupied by."
She saw out of the corner of her eye Inuyasha was struggling with himself. He seemed to want to say something, but was having great difficulty in spitting it out.
"Kagome, I-" Inuyasha broke off in order to look at a far off tree.
"Yes?" Kagome prompted in a detached fashion.
"What I mean to say is-" Inuyasha tried again.
Kagome was getting annoyed. "What is it, Inuyasha?"
Being confronted so sharply, Inuyasha's walls slammed up and the struggle that Kagome had witnessed happening on his face disappeared. He said somewhat nastily, "Did you have fun with your new boyfriend?"
Kagome was taken aback. Her eyes narrowed and she spoke in a frosty tone. "Who decided he was my boyfriend? And who ever said it was your business even if he was?"
Inuyasha sprang up with an unreadable expression on his face. "Ha! So you admit it's true?"
Kagome shot up from her seat also to confront him. "Where did you get that wild idea?! I haven't even known him for half a day and you think I'm going out with him?! Are you insane?! And what do you take me for, anyway?! Some chick that chases after every guy she sees?! I can't believe you, Inuyasha!" Having used all her breath, Kagome stood there panting and glaring at the boy to whom her dialogue was directed.
Inuyasha looked surprised for a moment before regaining his former disposition. "Well, you sure seemed to be enjoying his attentions this morning! He was all over you and you didn't seem to be objecting!"
Kagome balled her hands into fists. "He was not 'all over me'! And I was just being polite! Excuse me for having manners, you jerk! It's obvious you don't recognize what they are, having none yourself!"
"Hmph! I have plenty of manners!" Inuyasha said, crossing his arms.
"Oh, yeah?! I suppose you thought yourself polite when you made fun of Hojo's name and rudely suggested he take a hike?! And then you went and shouted at me just because I exhibited some kindness?! And now! Now you accuse me of dating him; a boy with the awareness of a rock and such a manner that I could never like him that way!" Kagome shouted.
Some steam seemed to go out of Inuyasha. "You-you mean you don't actually like Hojo?" he asked uncertainly.
Kagome sighed in exasperation. "What do you think I've been trying to tell you all this time? You've been wrongly accusing me and I don't appreciate it a bit!"
"And you never will like him that way no matter how nice he is?" Inuyasha asked anxiously.
"Exactly!" Kagome declared emphatically before sitting abruptly back down on the bench.
"Oh..." was all Inuyasha said as he sunk back down on the bench himself.
A few moments of silence ensued before Kagome rose from her seat. "Well...if you have nothing more to say to me, I'll be on my way."
She grabbed her streamer-wrapped poles and was just starting to skate away when Inuyasha's voice came to her, low and quiet.
"I'm sorry..."
Kagome stopped in her tracks and spun around to look at Inuyasha who had once again averted his eyes elsewhere.
"W-what did you say?" Kagome asked uncertainly. Inuyasha didn't answer. Kagome skated back to the bench, shoved her poles back in the snowbank and turned back to him. Cupping his cheek with her hand, she forced his head to turn to her and his eyes to look into hers. "What did you say?" she repeated.
"I'm...I'm sorry...for what I said earlier..." Inuyasha said slowly, as if contemplating if it were wise to reveal this truth.
Kagome looked at him in astonishment. His golden eyes held such emotion and strong sense of regret, she could have no doubt of the sincerity of his words. Suddenly, faced with this strong honesty and sincere remorse, her anger faded completely. She sat suddenly back on the bench with a 'thud' and stared straight in front of her, not speaking a word in her complete surprise.
Inuyasha took her silence as rejection of his apology and attempted to appease her. "Look, come on. I was just being stupid and the words flew out of my mouth. I-I didn't mean them... Will you say something already?!"
Kagome sighed as if coming to a decision. Then she turned and regarded Inuyasha a moment before gracing him with a gentle smile. "I forgive you," she said softly.
An expression of extreme relief swept over Inuyasha's face and he slumped on the bench as if a terrible weight had been lifted off of his shoulders.
"But you better not do anything that nasty ever again," Kagome warned. "I just might choose not to forgive you next time."
Inuyasha gave her a wry grin before seeming to remember something. "Oh, hey, Kagome? Um, can I ask you something?"
"Sure; go ahead."
"Okay...well, um...hmm, how to put it...let's see..."
Kagome rolled her eyes. "Just spit it out."
"Easy for you to say..." Inuyasha mumbled before relapsing into a contemplative silence. After a few moments, he turned back to her and she noticed a faint red coloured his cheeks. "Well, you see...the ski tournament is coming up...on Wednesday...and, well...they always have these banquet things...to open the tournament and then to close it and hand out awards..."
Kagome scarcely dared to hope he was going to ask her something she really wished he did.
"So you see...all of the racers are encouraged to bring...um...d-dates...and I thought that maybe...well, you know..." Inuyasha trailed off awkwardly, his blush increasing tenfold.
Kagome feigned an oblivious expression. "No, I don't believe I do...what should I know?"
Inuyasha started fidgeting with his hands and started pulling at the fingers of his gloves. "Damn it...I'm no good at this sort of thing...uh...Kagome? Would you...would you like to, um...go to the banquets with me...? I mean...whatever if you don't want to; I don't care. I just thought I'd ask 'cause it's boring as hell at them and I only wanted some company-"
"I'd love to go with you, Inuyasha," Kagome cut into his ranting with a serene smile.
Inuyasha looked up at her sharply. "You-you would?" His expression was one of disbelief.
Kagome nodded happily. "Yes. I would. If only to keep you company," she added dryly.
Inuyasha flushed. "I-"
Kagome laughed. "It's okay, Inuyasha; I understand." She wrapped her arms around a startled Inuyasha's neck and pressed her cheek tightly to his. Into his ear, she whispered softly, "Thanks for apologizing. And for inviting me to the banquets. It means a lot to me."
Embarrassed, Inuyasha muttered, "Yeah, well, whatever. But you better not tell any of the others about this!"
Kagome giggled and hugged him tighter. "I promise not to tell them. Your secret is safe with me."
Relieved, Inuyasha cast a furtive glance around at the other oblivious skiers on the mountain before hesitantly wrapping his own arms around her lower waist.
..:/:..
"Inuyasha's tact has much improved since earlier this morning," Miroku continued his earlier commentary. "After some heated argument, he seems to have figured out the inner workings of the female mind and moved in for the steal!"
"Move your fat head, Miroku!" Sango whispered. "I want to see what's happening too, ya know!"
She shoved the boy out of the way and looked through the hole in the bushes to see what Inuyasha and Kagome were up to. After a moment, she squealed excitedly.
"What?! What?!" the three other friends whispered furiously.
"Inuyasha just asked her to some banquets and she accepted!" Sango said.
"Awww," Ayame said. "Wait...what banquets? When are those?"
Sango and Ayame turned to regard their male friends.
Kouga coughed nervously. "Uh...the first one's on Tuesday night to open the tournament and welcome all the racers. The second one's on Thursday night to close the tournament and hand out awards."
"I see..." Ayame said.
"So, um...Ayame? How about going with me?" Kouga asked the redheaded girl beside him. Then he added hastily, "'Cause, you know, we need to keep up our image and all of the dating couple."
Ayame smiled brightly. "Sure! It'll be so much fun!" she said, ignoring the last part of his dialogue.
Miroku turned to Sango. "Sango, how would you like to accompany me out to dinner Tuesday night?"
Sango looked confused. "Dinner? What about the banquet?"
"I am not a racer and therefore can sadly not attend the banquet," Miroku said tragically. Then he straightened and shrugged. "I mean, I usually sneak in anyways, but I would very much like spending the evening with you instead this time."
Sango looked at him warily for a moment before shrugging. "Sounds nice. Okay, I'll go."
"Excellent. You won't regret it," Miroku promised.
"I hope not," Sango muttered before turning back to spying on Kagome and Inuyasha. A split second later, she cooed, "That's so sweet. They're hugging!"
"What!?" Miroku and Kouga cried, shocked.
"Inuyasha's hugging a girl?!" Miroku asked in disbelief.
"The apocalypse has come!" Kouga exclaimed.
"Oh, shut up, you two," Ayame said. "It can't be that miraculous, can it?"
Miroku and Kouga just looked at her.
"What?!" Ayame snapped irritably. "Why is it so amazing Inuyasha's hugging a girl?"
"Inuyasha's...not exactly...what you'd call a ladies' man," Kouga said.
"I think he has a phobia or something of forming something more than friendships with girls..." Miroku piped up thoughtfully. "I mean, you see how embarrassed he gets whenever he happens to make affectionate physical contact in any way with Kagome."
"You're right!" Sango exclaimed. "He's blushing like mad right now!"
"Hey, you've been looking long enough!" Ayame said. "It's my turn!"
Grumbling, Sango moved out of the way in order to let Ayame view the couple. She saw that Inuyasha and Kagome were currently standing up and preparing to go ski together. They were retrieving their poles and replacing their goggles over their eyes. Suddenly, Kagome looked almost straight at their hiding place and froze. Nudging Inuyasha, she pointed over at it. "What's that sparkling thing?" she asked him.
Inuyasha looked over as well and squinted a bit. "Looks kind of purple too..."
Ayame panicked. "Uh oh, guys. I think they've spotted us!"
"What's purple and sparkly and hides in the bushes?" Kagome asked as if it were a joke question.
Inuyasha's thoughtful gaze turned into a glare almost immediately. "Miroku in his sparkly purple boa! And I'll bet the others are with him! They've been spying on us!"
"Eep!" Ayame cried to the rest of the spying party. "We've been found out! Make a break for it!"
The others scrambled up and as quick as they could, untangled themselves from the brush. They burst out of the bushes and made a beeline for the nearest hill.
"Oh, no you don't!" Inuyasha cried. "Get back here, you spying rodents!"
"Spying rodents?" Kagome muttered to herself. "We have GOT to work on Inuyasha's vocabulary..."
..:/:..
A/N Another lovely chapter completed. Not quite as much humour, but more fluff this time. Was it good? I was trying so hard to keep in character with Inuyasha, but it's difficult because when he shows his soft side, he's really soft and sensitive...but I didn't want to make him too soft...oh, well; I think it turned out alright. What do you think? I'd love to hear your comments and I'll talk to ya next chapter! (Or via instant messenger)