I don't own Inuyasha or Card Captor Sakura, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi and Clamp (heard that they were re-releasing CCS I would suggest everyone go buy a copy before it goes out of print… at least if this rumor is true, anyway.)
Beta: BloodCherry
Thank you dear!
Ahy, I would just like to inform everyone I shall be using a mix of Anime and Manga as such the cards captured will be in no concrete order, thus things that might had been a certain way in either are going to be the new "Sable" order. On another note, do you guys want Touya/Yukito to find out sooner or later, or never at all?
Chapter 2
It had been several days since she'd been able to see Sakura or Tomoyo, things had been so busy she'd been studying with Touya for her Algebra test and running every day after school to ensure she would be allowed to keep her Track Grant from the school. She had to say she was extremely pleased with her increase in pace, but at the same time she was exhausted at the end of the day. Just yesterday, she'd fallen asleep on Touya and had woken up at Yukito's house; apparently the two boys had taken her there because Touya's father was out of town. The only thing that had made being so alone bearable was Kero, while the little guardian was annoying he always managed to cheer her up.
Grumbling, she nearly jumped when two small bodies crashed into hers "Ah! Tomoyo, Sakura! How are you two doing?"
"Very well, Kagome. We were wondering what you were doing today?" The dark gray haired girl asked.
Kagome pulled a small calendar from her messenger bag, "Actually, I'm free. No track practice and I finished my tests for this week, so nothing to study for, why? What's up?"
"There's a new store opening, it's got a lot of cute stuff! We want to go there, and were wondering if you wanted to come?" Sakura asked a bright smile on her cheeks, it seemed like it would be extremely exciting.
"Alright, ah! Who are all these cuties, Sakura?" Kagome finally asked, looking over the other students who had arrived. She looked over the students; the one on the far left was a pretty young girl with deep curling red hair, almost like a dark cherry wood color and gentle chocolate eyes. The child in the middle had ruler straight hair of a medium brown hue, her eyes were a deep gray color and she wore neat thin glasses, the child on the right had extremely light brown hair which was braided into pigtails on either side of her head, she also had vibrant, almost golden eyes.
"This is Chiharu," Sakura pointed to the pigtailed girl, "Naoko," the girl with glasses, "and Rika." The three girls looked over the older girl curiously, she was wearing the simple outfit that all the girls wore; a short black skirt hit mid thigh while her powder blue blazer was laying across her grey messenger bag, the white dress shirt was tucked in but the top three buttons were open while her tie was extremely lose around her neck. She had bright blues eyes and her long raven black hair was falling down her back from a high ponytail. "Girls this is Kagome, she stays with me and helps me with my homework."
"Ah! It's nice to meet you," Kagome bowed.
The three girls smiled, before bowing back and replied in union, "It's nice to meet you, too!"
"So what grade are you in, Kagome?" Naoko asked finally, they had been walking quietly a bit intimidated by the older girl.
Kagome grinned, "I'm 14, I'll be fifteen this May. So, two more months! I'm really excited."
The younger girls giggled in delight, "You seem to be a lot like Sakura!" Chiharu stated.
"Ah! I am not! I'm nowhere near as clumsy, and I'm an excellent cook!" Kagome teased, while Sakura pouted, "Kagome, that's mean!"
The older girl just giggled before tugging on Sakura's small pony tails, "I'm just teasing, silly, you'll get better at cooking."
"I think Kagome is actually really mature." Rika answered, a soft shy smile on her cheeks.
Kagome smiled, "Thank you, Rika. I believe the same is true about you, ne?"
Tomoyo grinned, "So observant!"
"Ah! Did you hear about our next field trip?" Chiharu finally asked.
Tomoyo smiled, "Yamazaki said something about going to a Museum of Art, didn't he?"
"I think so… but he also said they were short on chaperones!" Naoko stated, she was actually excited at the thought of being free to roam the Museum. There could be really awesome scary art that students weren't suppose to look at, and she wanted to see them.
Sakura frowned, "What about you, Kagome? Could you be a chaperone?"
Kagome blinked as she was suddenly the focus of five eager faces, "Hai… I suppose I could… the school wouldn't mind, they wouldn't have to pay extra for a teacher and I have great grades. As long as Mr. Kinomoto, the teacher and the school are okay with it, I don't see why not." Kagome continued to pat her cheek lightly in thought, it would be fun, and legally she was considered to be an emancipated adult.
"That would be nice, Kagome!" Sakura grinned, even Tomoyo and Rika looked pleased. They were really close and in their minds it would be great to have their own personal chaperone.
"Hai, hai… Ano, Sakura, is this the place?" Kagome asked a frown on her face as she glanced into the shop window. It really was a cute little store it even had a doll like front, but the inside was a mess, there were boxes everywhere. Some of the boxes were knocked over, and seemed to have everything from stationary to plush toys falling out.
"Yeah… I talked to the lady this morning." Sakura frowned.
"Lady?" Tomoyo asked.
Sakura nodded, "Yeah. She said her name was Maki Matsumoto, she was the owner."
"Well… it says open." Rika pointed to above the door, sure enough there was a warm "OPEN" sign in light blue above the doorframe.
Suddenly a large thumping could be heard inside, Sakura was opening the door as the other girls followed. Kagome was surprised to see a young woman in her mid to late twenties sitting on the floor, she'd obviously tripped and seemed to be rather clumsy.
"Ano… Miss Maki, can my friends and I help?" Sakura suddenly asked, a bright smile on her face.
Maki frowned, "Ah, but I can't let my customers help!"
"But we want to see the cute things now!" Chiharu stated a bright smile on her face.
Kagome giggled, "You might as well let them, they seem to be a stubborn lot." Kagome moved around the group of younger girls to help the older woman off the floor.
As things began to settle, it quickly became apparent to everyone there that Maki was an easily frazzled young woman, and she was extremely clumsy! There was no other way to describe it, really it was as if the older woman could trip over particles of dust. It took them a while, but eventually after Miss Maki had fallen over several times and nearly took everyone in the shop with her at least twice, the place looked top notch. Toys, purses and jewelry lined the shelves with different types of pens, pencils, and stationary… really, it was like a young girls dream shop.
The walls were covered in small posters, and post cards backed with light blue paint that seemed to light the room up because of the large store front windows that allowed a large amount of sunshine inside the store. "Ahh, you girls did really well!" Kagome smiled, she'd helped as well but she was impressed with them, they didn't really have to help out the store owner.
"Yes, I really must thank you girls. This would have taken me ages, I just moved into this town and I don't really know anyone who could have helped." Maki finished. "You all helped me out a lot!" the older woman smiled brightly before placing a set of tea and treats upon the table as a thank you.
Kagome frowned, something was bothering her… she found herself thinking over it before turning back toward the girls grinning as they enjoyed the treats. Kagome found herself once again drawn back toward the store owner as she continued to talk, "I suppose you really can't find everything like this. It should be properly sorted out by tomorrow, I hope you girls come then, alright?"
"Kagome, can you come?" Tomoyo asked, she knew that the older girl was often times extremely busy.
Kagome sighed, "I don't know… I might not be able to, I know I have practice in the morning, I don't know what they plan to do for tonight."
Sakura pouted, she wanted Kagome to be able to come, "Are you sure?"
"Well… we'll just have to see." Kagome smiled warmly, "And now, it's time for you girls to head home! It's nearly seven, call your parents and I'll walk you guys home."
Before the girls could properly reply one of the boxes fell over, and a large plump egg shaped panda thing began bouncing toward them at a very leisurely rate, it finally stopped at Chiharu's feet. Chiharu smiled softly, before bending down and cuddling the strange plush, "It's really cute!"
Sakura giggled softly, "I thought it was a soccer ball."
"Ah, Miss Maki…can I get this one early? Please?" Chiharu begged, she had completely fallen in love with the odd plush toy.
"Well, I suppose." Maki smiled, before walking over to the register with Chiharu.
"Alright, I'm serious you guys, we need to get you guys home. I'm sure your parents are getting worried." Kagome stated looking over the girls, they looked a little guilty.
"Ah, Kagome I can get picked up. My home is out of the way." Tomoyo smiled.
"Then Tomoyo calls first, I'm not leaving until you're in a car." Kagome replied, it wasn't that she didn't trust the girl, but as the oldest it was her job to make sure that they got home safely.
The girls giggled but agreed, it was getting dark outside and none of them really wanted to walk home alone. One by one the girls called home, and explained their situation, by the time they were all done Tomoyo's ride had appeared to take her home. It was interesting on the walk to see where everyone lived, Naoko's home was right next to a cemetery which was more than a little creepy. Chiharu lived above the bakery that her family owned, while Rika lived right next to the Akamatsu shrine that sold several items and seemed to reflect the girl's mature outlook on life.
"Did you have fun today, Sakura?"
"Yeah!" Sakura smiled, "I'm going to go take a bath and stuff, okay?"
Kagome nodded watching the girl disappear upstairs, collapsing back on the coach Kagome could only stare up at the ceiling. Today had been odd, and there couldn't be a better word for it. She'd never really gotten along with the children her age, preferring those who were either older or younger than herself. The only problem with watching and hanging out with children younger than herself was the fact that it left her really tired at the end of the day. It would have been so much worse if she'd had practice. Yawning, Kagome fell over kicking her socks of before curling up on the couch content to fall asleep.
Touya blinked, he'd just finished supper, it was late for the Kinomoto family. He'd heard Sakura coming in much later than the board on the kitchen said she would be home, he'd been getting worried until he'd gotten a phone call telling him what was going on. His father was currently spending the night at the University., so he thought it would only be himself and Sakura, but since Kagome looked like she was going to pass out it would be the three of them.
"Kagome…" Touya moved closer, shaking the girl he could only chuckle as she swatted at his hands, "Kagome, get up, you need to eat."
Kagome just tried to role more firmly into the couch, until something pinched the back of her neck. She shot up so quickly she found herself sprawled out across the floor and Touya himself, to be honest she didn't feel like moving, so if the boy wanted to get up he would have to do the moving. "Sorry, Touya."
"Are you going to get up?" He asked.
"No."
The older boy snorted before forcing the girl's limbs to move, sitting he looked down at the girl in his lap. Kagome made things easier for him and his father even if he himself would never admit it. It was a relief to know that she was watching out for his little sister, that she would help the younger girl with her homework or cook dinner for the whole family when neither he nor his father could make it home in time. The two of them had come to rely on Kagome more than either of them had expected.
Kagome just huffed, her legs hurt and everything was sore she wasn't going to move willingly and he was just going to have to deal with it. Though, she did throw her arms around Touya's neck when he promptly changed his position by standing up, taking her into the dinning room before ceremoniously dumping her into the chair beside his own. "Touya… your sooo mean!"
Touya snorted, bumping foreheads with his friend, he worked quickly to untangle her limbs from around his neck before speaking, "Eat."
Kagome pouted, "Fine, fine… Oh… Thank you." She was grinning, she knew that Touya was a fantastic cook but he was also a very lazy person. It wasn't often that he made Oden, and generally it only when she was at that house.
"I didn't even know you were going to be here." Touya huffed, turning form his friend to eat and hide the small pink on his cheeks.
Kagome tried to hide an amused grin, he would have to know she was coming… she'd heard Sakura tell Touya over the phone she would be walking the younger girl home. "Right." Ignoring her friend's denials she promptly began to munch on the yummy food. "I'm sleeping here tonight, too."
"Do you always just make demands?"
"Grrr, I'm not walking home this late at night." Kagome frowned at him.
Touya sighed, "Yeah…"
"Kagome!"
The dark haired girl blinked, before the shout continued, "There's a hot bath for you." Sakura finished, as she settled down to eat in her pajamas, she hadn't meant to stay out so late.
"'Kay," Once she was finished eating Kagome practically skipped from the kitchen to upstairs to take a nice hot bath.
"Sakura." Touya stared at his little sister, it wasn't often that she was irresponsible like this but sometimes she needed to be reminded.
Sakura looked up as her brother curiously, "Ah?"
"Why didn't you call me earlier to tell me where you were?" Touya asked.
Sakura frowned, before a slight pink came across her cheeks. "I forgot… I didn't mean to, I promise. Kagome got onto me about it when we were alone too… so I'm really sorry if I made you worry."
"Hmm. It's fine, kaijuu, just don't do it again." Touya rose, ruffling her hair, "Stick everything into the dish washer when you're done."
"TOUYA!" Sakura scowled, he was so lazy.
Touya snorted before opening the door to his room, blinking, Touya scowled. Kagome was passed out on his bed, it was obvious that she'd taken a bath her clothing was in a pile at the end of his bed and she was wearing one of his t-shirts and a pair of his boxer shorts. That was one thing that had driven him crazy since becoming friends with Kagome, she tended to steal his clothing sometimes just to wear on a regular day or for sleepwear not only that but it was awkward walking into his own room to find brassiers and panties thrown about the room.
Frowning, Touya gathered his own clothing before crawling into his own bed, it was easier than trying to move a sleepy Kagome… the last time he tried he'd been smacked in the jaw by a strong right hook, Kagome never even knew that she'd hit him. Grumbling to himself he slipped down stairs for a quick check to make sure the doors and windows were locked, before crawling into his father's bed considering his own was occupied.
O
Touya smirked, this morning hadn't been that bad. He hadn't been forced to wake Kagome up like normal and she'd made pancakes for breakfast as an apology for passing out in his bed. "Ahh, kaijuu! Come on, we'll be late!"
"Touya, do you always do that?" Kagome asked, sitting behind him on his bike. She'd left her skateboard at the school yesterday.
"Hai."
Kagome rolled her eyes, before smiling when Sakura rushed forward to stand up next to them, "Sakura… you really do have a problem with sleeping in, don't you?"
"Ahh! So?" Sakura pouted, "And why are you riding with Nii-chan today?"
Kagome blinked, "Ah, I left my board at school yesterday, that and Yukito said he would be riding his bike today he has a dentist appointment at what, 3?" Kagome stared at the back of Touya's head as if demanding him to confirm or deny her response.
"3:15." Touya replied as he continued to pedal.
"Oh," Sakura smiled, "Tomoyo wants to talk to you about something, Kagome."
"Oh boy, do you know what it is?"
"Uh, no… she said that she wanted to talk to you about it in person." Sakura sighed, pouting slightly. She really wished she could go to the high school with them, then she could spend more time with Kagome and Yukito, they both made her feel so warm.
"Ah, alright." Kagome gnawed on her bottom lip what was that going to be about, "Yukito!"
Touya snorted, was he really best friends with this chick with A.D.H.D and a food machine?
"Kagome, Sakura…" Yukito grinned when the scowl on his friends face widened.
"Yukito…."
"Touya." The impish grin was still there as if daring him to do something.
"Chiharu!" Sakura yelled as the four of them neared the gates of her elementary school. "Ah, what's wrong?"
Kagome frowned, before nearly jumping when Touya stopped. Puffing up her cheeks she swung her leg over the bike annoyed with the knowing smirk that was on his face before walking over toward the two girls, it was only when she waved both Touya and Yukito off that they continued. Both of them had practice, thankfully she didn't or she would have had to go as well, "Don't cry…" Kagome pulled her handkerchief out of her backpack before whipping at the girls cheeks.
"You know, I bought that panda plushy at Twin Bells yesterday after we helped out? Well, I woke up this morning and it was gone and I really don't know what to do!" Chiharu sniffed, she really was upset, both Kagome and Sakura had been surprised at the large about of plush toys the girl had in her room and all over the house really.
"Ah, Chiharu don't worry about it, alright? I'll go speak with Miss Maki tonight, okay?" Kagome smiled.
Chiharu blinked in surprise, "Why Miss Maki?"
"I can't tell you that, but I'm sure your plush will turn up. Maybe he's hiding in one of your plush mountains!" Kagome stated, quickly. She'd talked to Kero once she'd woken up that morning… he'd been pretty helpful when she'd been trying to explain her new feeling when she'd been in the Twin Bells. Maybe he was right and her powers were growing!
Leaving Sakura and Tomoyo to finish calming down the younger girl before walking on to the high school and her own class, it seemed to take days for things to calm and settle down, before she knew it school was over. She'd talked to Kero and Sakura about it earlier, Sakura had gone to pick up Kero earlier and gone on ahead and to be honest it was making her really nervous.
"Miss Maki?" Kagome blinked, the older woman was on the floor and Tomoyo looked more than a little nervous. "What happened, Tomoyo?"
"Oh… Kero could tell that there was a card in Miss Maki's shop. So he and Sakura went through the plush toys one by one until they found the last one, and it turned out to be the card. Suddenly all the toys lifted off the ground and began spinning around and around, then Miss Maki walked in and… well, she fainted. Sakura told me to stay here, and she and Kero ran after the card when it ran away from the shop." Tomoyo smiled, to be honest she was rather depressed that she was going to miss her chance and filming but she would prefer that everyone come back safe and sound.
Kagome frowned, now she had no idea which way the two of them went, "Do you know where she was headed?"
"I believe that they headed in the direction of Penguin Park." Tomoyo replied.
Kagome sighed, just great! "Tomoyo, let's get Miss Maki in the back, then I want you to lock the door after me and stay back there until you can see Sakura and I come back, okay?"
Tomoyo blinked, "I could call mother's bodyguards."
"I would prefer it if you did, this is a busier part of town, and there's no telling who's out on the street tonight." Kagome replied, walking forward she forced Maki's prown body onto her own weight and began to move the woman. Tomoyo helped, and bit by bit the two of them got the woman tucked away into the back of the store out of sight.
Kagome waved at the girl before taking off down the street, the problem with running around at night was that it was creepy. Not only that, but she really wasn't too fond of Penguin park… every time she'd gone she'd ended up getting pushed into the river or like the last time she'd tried to go on a date, Touya had scared the poor guy off before she'd even gotten there.
Kagome sighed, there was a scream… and a very loud slightly annoying shout, oh yeah, that had to be Sakura and Kero. Running toward the two she sighed as she realized that they seemed to just be running around the park, like chickens with their head cut off. It was obvious that Kero hadn't ever done anything like this, that or it was because he was in his "weaker" state of being that wouldn't allow him to fight back against the towering pink bunny thing of doom.
Stopping short of the scene before her, Kagome quickly pulled the card key from the loose necklace she wore it on, "The key which hides the power of dark, show your true form before me! I, Kagome, command you under our contract. RELEASE!" A large golden circle representing Clow's magic rose up around her along with a small golden pulse of power and a small gust of wind.
Looking up at the now several stories high pink bunny she smiled slightly, "Windy, by my command becoming a whirling wind and trip this card! RELEASE!" Kero blinked, as he watched the giant began to take a large step to crush Sakura, the whirling wind became fast and before completely toppling the giant bunny. Finally laying on its back, Kero could only sigh in relief, "It's name is Jump, Kagome." Kero watched, as Kagome began to seal the card he would have to talk with her and Sakura about helping. If he hadn't of caught Sakura during her fall the girl wouldn't have been alive. It was different for Kagome, she had magic to help and protect her, while Sakura did have magic she knew no spells to protect herself.
"Clow Card!"
Kero watched as a dazzling display of colors began to form a card before pulling Jump into its seal. "Good Job, Kagome!"
Sakura sighed before sliding to the ground, that had been the scariest thing ever. She had a hard time believing that a "stupid" card could cause that much trouble.
"Ah! Kagome-chan, that was fantastic!" A cheery voice called from the bushes.
All three members of the catching Jump team, turned to look toward Tomoyo before large sweatdrops slipped down the back of their heads. She was standing there with her camera covering one eye, all the while film seemed to continue as if she were waiting to capture every moment.
"Ah… Tomoyo, what do you intend to do with that film?" Kagome finally asked, slightly curious.
"I'm not sure yet!" Tomoyo replied, a slightly sadistic grin on her relatively innocent looking face.
It was then that Kagome decided that she didn't want to know what the girl did with the film as long as she wasn't known for it, "Okay… just make sure that no one knows that this is real." And for some reason a sense of foreboding ran down the back of her spine as that smile seemed to get even wider and dollar signs began to appear in the girls eyes.
"I'm going to bed, come on, Kero. Sakura, I'm walking you home, what about you, Tomoyo?"
"Oh, If you would walk me back to the shop I can get a ride home from the guards," Tomoyo practically sang.
"Hee, alright then." Kagome sighed, after they dropped Sakura and Tomoyo off, she found herself settling down beside Kero in her single bed room apartment. The walls were a soft blue, and it was certainly time for the two of them to hit that hay.
"Kagome, I don't think it's a good idea to let Sakura join you on these missions anymore. She did something very dangerous." Kero was being serious
"What did she do?" Kagome asked waiting, her eyes grew large showing surprise. She'd been thrown into the air by Jump, but it was disturbing to think that Sakura had been thrown up into the air as well. Thankfully, Kero was there or she would have been splattered across the ground and it really did make her feel guilty about not telling Touya what was going on. Especially if his little sister was going to keep getting involved, "Kero… what if we told Touya?"
Kero frowned, "I don't know… that could get a little iffy, I mean, I don't know him well enough to say if you should or shouldn't."
"I'll sleep on it then." Kagome sighed, before flopping back on the bed and pulling the covers up, it was way, way, way too cold for it to be the beginning of summer. It would be too long before she would be turning 15 and she honestly couldn't wait, it would give her so many more options on life. It might also give her a chance to have Souta live with her instead of with the state, he was only seven and they thought that she couldn't give him adequate care, maybe they would if she worked hard enough. Her mind busy with distressing topics Kagome slipped into a rough night of tossing and turning all the while Kero watched over his young ward.
O
It had been nearly a week since the incident with the Jump card and Kagome had talked with both Sakura and Tomoyo about it. They both agreed not to interfere or "help" with a card unless she was in dire needs of help, or if they had planned for something to happen ahead of time.
Either way it was more than frustrating, not only that but she found herself spending more and more time with Tomoyo and it seemed they both had a favorite hobby that they could only indulge in when Touya wasn't around. Picking on Sakura, the way her face would light up, or her scream or "MOI!" rattling through the air amused both of them far more than it should.
Kagome sighed as she watched the other run, "Nee, Sango!"
The older girl turned around to look toward the girl, "What is it, Kagome?"
"You're starting early every time…" Kagome replied, she'd been watching the three girls start for nearly an hour. It had given her plenty of time to study their leg movements, she could also see things that might bother them while running.
Sango blinked, slightly surprised before looking over at their coach who nodded in agreement, "Darn it! I've been practicing a lot. Maybe I'm starting to overdo it."
Kagome smiled, "I do that sometimes too, and it's a real pain in the butt."
Sango smiled, before turning back to running, steadying herself at the mark she waited before the flag was dropped and they all took off, the four girls on the start line were the fastest on the team. Kagome wasn't quite at that level yet, but she was getting closer.
"Hey! Kagome!"
Kagome blinked, "Hai? What is it, Rin?"
"You've heard about that new dessert shop that opened, right?" The smaller girl asked, all the while walking toward her.
"Yes… it's called Sweet Kisses, isn't it?" Kagome asked, she'd been meaning to go there with Yukito or Sakura for the last several days. But with a running meet coming up, things had gotten pretty hectic with non-stop practice times.
Sango huffed before sliding onto one of the benches beside Kagome, "Yeah, Coach Kagura is letting us out for now and we were thinking about going, do you want to come with us?"
Kagome gnawed on her bottom lip, she didn't have anything to do and she was actually ahead on her rent and had money left over she should be able to go… if she could get Yukito to pay for her snack the next time she went out with Touya and him. Then all would be well, "Sure," Kagome smiled, a bit shy it was different to hang out with GIRLS her age, she'd always been around boys with her brothers.
"Alright, ladies!" Couch called out her sharp red eyes seemed to glare into each of us, "Practice is officially over, clean up and get out. It's the weekend so make sure it's a good one. Our next meet's on Thursday in Osaka. The bus will be here at 6 am if you're not there well… you don't come."
With that the three of us walked back toward the showers, after cleaning the three of us gathered our things and made our way toward Sweet Kisses, supposedly it had gotten extremely popular.
Kagome could honestly say she hoped it was full of calories, it was one of the worse things about being extremely athletic, she generally had to take up three to four times as many calories as a normal person. Which made her and most of the girls on the team sound like hogs, but it was something they enjoyed, so why not?
During the walk into town, Kagome found herself getting to know both Sango and Rin. Both girl were surprisingly enough a lot like her, they enjoyed music as much as she did. But Rin seemed to be a bit of an Otaku… she was seriously obsessed with anime and manga, while Sango was a complete and utter tomboy of every variety. Kagome was sure if the school would let Sango, she would participate in every girl's sports team they had.
"Kagome, why do you always hang out with Yukito and Touya?" Rin finally asked, she was more than a little curious.
Kagome fidgeted, "Well… it's complicated."
"Ohhh! So you like Touya!" Rin practically squealed.
Kagome blinked, before a violent blush rushed to her cheeks, "I do not!" Kagome knew she sounded indignant and defensive but that wasn't something that she expected. "I mean, not like that at least… Touya was the first person I made friends with after the accident, after I moved here."
Sango frowned, "What accident?"
"It's why I'm here in Tomoeda, I was born and raised in Tokyo. And I don't feel comfortable to talk about it yet." Kagome frowned, she really didn't want to think about it.
Rin frowned, she hadn't meant to bring up anything bad, "Sooo, how did you two meet?"
Kagome glanced at Rin, the girl had a mischievous grin on her face it was almost as if she was asking about a girl's first date. "Ah… It was actually really embarrassing."
Rin started to giggle madly, "That means you have to tell us!"
"Gee, Rin, don't be so forceful," Sango frowned, sometimes the smaller girl just flew off the handle and turned into a giggling fan chick that made her want to scream!
Kagome poked her fingers together, before releasing a gasp of breath she didn't know she was holding. "Ifllnhmokay?"
Both the girl paused, glanced at each other before giggling. Rin finally piped up, "We have no idea what you just said."
Kagome huffed thinking back on the day, "Fine, fine, I'll tell you about it, okay?"
Sango and Rin looked at each other, if she was being this resistant to telling them then it had to have been pretty bad, right?
This was going to be the first Hanami viewing that she'd gone to after the accident, it was a little depressing, Souta was in Osaka with an Aunt that she personally didn't get along with. In fact, their case worker explicitly stated that he couldn't in good conscious let her stay with a woman that seemed to hate to even look at her.
Looking over her clothing she could only sigh, it would be good for her to get out and about she'd basically been a recluse for the last several weeks. Shaking the thoughts from her mind, Kagome made her way toward the nearby park that she'd seen days before when she'd been moving into town. It was full of children and parents, they were all laughing and giggling… and it made her heart clench, a month ago this would have been her family, and it hurt to even think about it.
Several boys ran by, they seemed to be having the best time, or at least that's what it looked like to her. Those thoughts turned to panic as she felt herself being pushed forward, she could feel her breath stop, it was like she was slamming forward into the car again. For a short moment all she could see were the flash of head lights, the shattered tinkling of glass and the grinding earsplitting sound of crushed metal, everything faded to black.
Time seemed to stop and she felt trapped in this field of never ending darkness, slowly her vision cleared and she found herself looking into three pairs of confused and slightly worried eyes, one was such a soft golden brown she just felt warm and comforted, the other a darker chocolate color of brown seemed to be taking in everything about her as if trying to understand what had happened, the third was a bright brilliant green that seemed young and frightened.
"Are you alright?" The boy asked, he was perhaps two or three years older than her, his hair was an odd white gray that was similar to albinos, but his eyes were that odd golden brown color.
Kagome blinked, "I think so, what happened?"
"You fainted on the steps. Touya caught you." The silver haired boy responded, "He's Touya, by the way." The boy smiled, pointing toward the chocolate eyed boy who seemed extremely bored.
"Thank you…" Kagome could feel her cheeks heat up, god that was so embarrassing! How could she had done something so stupid, this wasn't the first time it happened. She would jolt forward and have something relatively close to a small panic attack, it was like reliving it all over again. Blushing again, she nearly swore "Touya" was just looking down at her with something akin to amusement, he'd totally caught her spacing out, and it just wasn't fair at all.
"I'm Kagome Higurashi," Kagome muttered. As she finally sat up, rubbing the bridge of her nose.
Touya studied the girl before them, she really was embarrassed and seemed extremely uncomfortable. "Touya Kinomoto, this is my little kaijuu, Sakura Kinomoto." He had to grunt when his baby sister slammed down on his foot, "and this is my friend, Yukito Tsukishiro."
"Ano… Kagome… don't you have anyone to spend Hanami with?" Sakura suddenly asked, her eyes bright with curiousness.
"No… My brother is with my aunt… and my parents." A slightly pained look fell over her features.
"Then come with us!" Sakura grinned, pleased with her solution.
"But…"
"Hn, don't argue she's already made up her mind." Touya smirked, before placing his arm with hers and pulling her along.
"And that's how we met, I spent the rest of Hanami with them and Mr. Kinomoto. I went with them this year too." Kagome finished looking ahead of them. It was such a small memory compared to her life in Tokyo, but it was just as precious.
Rin grinned, "That's so cute!"
Sango rolled her eyes, "Now that it's out, will you drop it?"
"Oh! We're here!" Kagome rushed ahead a bit to look into their window display. They really did do fantastic things with sugar and cacao, the cakes looked amazing. The one in the window seemed to be a wedding cake, and it was amazing, six tiers each with a different design.
"Wow, this place is really all it's cracked up to be!" Rin muttered before yanking open the door and making a bee line for the white chocolate section of the store. Both Kagome and Sango followed at a much slower pace, neither of them were chocolate-holics like the short perky Rin.
Kagome froze before zoning out, it was that energy again, it was the same as the jump card but it was deeper, almost darker. Frowning, she began to look around not really noticing the shadows that seemed to have come to life.
Touya smirked, oh yes, he was going to have to start calling her his little stalker… he knew it was going to drive Kagome up the wall but that was all part of the fun. She got annoyed and reacted to so few things that when he found something that would push those buttons of hers, he would use it until she got over them, then the process would start all over again.
The smirk slowly faded from his face as he noticed the far away expression on her face, it was happening more and more often. Even Yukito was starting to notice, and he was oblivious to just about everything, don't get him wrong he loved the small boy, but geez sometimes you just had to spell things out in big cartoon letters for him to get it.
Freezing, Touya could only frown, he wasn't sure what that was but he knew what it wasn't. It had power to it, and it hadn't been there the day before, this was nothing like the ghost he saw around town. Looking for the source his eyes widened, that wasn't normal, he could see small tendrils of shadows weaving their way toward Kagome, and they seemed to hold a slightly sinister intent.
Touya knew he shouldn't focus on the dark shadowy tendrils, but the closer they got to his friend, the more nervous he felt. Grinning at the sudden idea, he promptly began to walk forward. As he came closer to Kagome and Sango, he nearly swore as the shadow seemed to fade into the shadows of the wooden bookshelves that held information on cake recipes and other sweets.
Just as he was arriving he could see the shelving begin to rock forward, once, twice. Moving with great speed, he could only grunt as the heavy oak caught on his shoulder, it was still trying to fall forward with its heavy frame and the items falling around him he could only wish it would stop. A relief welled up in him when one of the other servers rushed toward his aid. Glancing he could see Kagome's surprise at having a number of books raining down on top of her head. Then again, so did the girl she'd walked in with.
"Touya! Are you all right?" she asked quickly.
Touya wanted to nod to calm her fears, but to be honest his shoulder hurt like a bitch and he was really wondering if he had dislocated it. The movement of his forearm nearly sent him to his knees as the balled joint rubbed outside of its socket. "I think I need to speak with the manager."
Kagome frowned, "I'm waiting here. You need to see a doctor."
Touya nearly groaned, damnit, when she got worried there really was no deterring her. "Fine, wait here then," when he turned to walk into the back office, he couldn't see the guilt that was plainly seen on her face. He had no idea how badly she felt, or that she considered this to be here fault.
"Sango... I'm going to go with Touya…" Kagome had no idea how worried she looked, "Could you tell Rin?"
Sango tried not to giggle, it wasn't in the least bit funny that Touya had been hurt. But it was also very obvious that the two of them cared for each other… though she did have to wonder how Yukito fit in all this? Was there some type of threesome going on? Sango groaned, Rin's Yaoi fangirl moments were rubbing off on her if she was trying to put Kagome into a relationship with two boys… though, if Sango was honest with herself, she could totally see it happening.
This really was all her fault, at the moment that darn bookcase fell, she could feel the flash of power swell before it ran off. It had felt unsatisfied with its attempt, she was really going to have to talk to Kero about it tonight. Looking forward, she frowned before taking Touya's things from his hands he'd been walking their way, still in his waiter outfit.
O
"Kero… we've gone by that shop three times in the last two days. That card is gone…" Kagome muttered, sitting on her comfortable bean bag chair, there were several sprawled across the floor of her apartment. Then again, she might have to add more things to her small living space since she'd been getting a lot more visitors recently. She'd made friends in Sango and Rin, and Sakura and her friends often times came to her home just to be able to sit down and do their home work.
"Ahh, it's still in town and more than likely if there are any others in this town with spiritual energy then they are going to be attacked… The cards know about you… but more importantly, they know about Sakura!"
"Sakura?"
"Yes… some of the card are ruthless… they will do everything that they can to get what they want, including hurting others. Sakura had the ability to become the next card captor… but because you had more energy than she did, I chose you." Kero grinned.
"I would've had to hurt you, Kero… she's a little kid! She shouldn't have to be put through this," Kagome gave the small guy a rough glare.
Kero sweat dropped, Kagome didn't need to know he'd gone against his initial choice, right? "Haii," His osakan dialect seemed to reflect through his voice as he whined.
"So, what do I need to do, Kero?" Kagome finally asked, her blue eyes searched his as if she could find an answer upon his face.
"Wait…" Kero sighed, that was really all they could do at this point, while Kagome was training herself to be able to sense them. It would probably take another two or three cards before she could search for them easily, and without the divining board she couldn't find them in their dormant state.
"Nee… Kero, I'm going to bed."
Kero nodded, a slight blush on his face. While he wasn't human he still had an idea of what men found attractive, he had been created by Clow after all, and the heavens knew the man was a pervert. Amusingly enough, a dark haired teenager in London sneezed violently, he had a feeling things weren't quite right… maybe he should check on Kero and Yue a bit early? Nahh!
Kero settled in for the night watching over Kagome, before he too fell into a deep sleep.
Kagome yawned as she woke, rolling over she blinked when she watched Kero slip down her hair, "Kero, what are you doing, silly?"
The little yellow lion grumbled before pulling his silk sheets (Kagome's hair), to cover himself before snuggling down.
Kagome broke down giggling before pulling Kero's blanket of hair away, "Ne!" Kagome snorted when the small round ball of yellow just rolled onto his rotund belly.
Sighing, Kagome just shook her head before her day began anew, it was a really slow day and it looked like she was the first to arrive. Blinking Kagome felt her jaw drop, what the heck? Starring at the Elementary school, she could only confess to confusion, on the front of the school lawn it seemed as if all the desks from inside were now stacking on top of the other to create something akin to a pyramid.
"MOEEE!" Sakura's scream from her left nearly made Kagome break down into chuckles, "What's wrong, Sakura?"
"I'm the one who has to straighten up the class in the morning this week!" The girl looked as if she were going to break down into tears.
"Ah, I think the teachers should just settle this. They are less likely to get hurt if the pile shifts." Kagome stated, as she continued to stare at the mound. "And don't you dare try to do it! Ne, Tomoyo, tell me or Touya if she does. I've got class, I need to talk to the two of you after this, though!" Kagome smiled before waving at the two girls.
It was similar to the shop incident, she'd really thought her eyes had been playing tricks on her when those tendrils of shadow began to move. But she had definitely seen something rolling in the shadows of those desk; she would just have to confirm things with Kero. If what she thought was true then… it would make things a lot easier!
"Tomoyo! I need your help with something!" Kagome called out as she walked toward the elementary school, she couldn't stop the long yawn, today had been so boring it wasn't even funny. It had also made her incredibly sleepy.
Tomoyo blinked in surprise, before a bright smile slipped across her face, "Does this involve the strange pyramid from this morning?"
"Right in one, Tomoyo." Kagome grinned, but internally she pouted, this kid was so perceptive it was rather scary.
"Hoooe!" Sakura could still remember the jump card… what if they were all like that weird pink thing!
"Come on, Sakura, it won't be that bad. If you feel so uncomfortable, you don't have to come." Kagome smiled.
Sakura frowned, "But..." She didn't want to let them go by themselves, what if they need help? "I'm coming."
Smiling warmly, Kagome pulled the younger girl into a one armed hug, "Thank you, Sakura."
Sakura felt her face light up before hugging back, she didn't know why but Kagome made her feel all warm and floaty… it was weird.
Along the walk they talked about this and that… one subject that made Kagome internally cringe was Touya's dislocated shoulder. He'd been told point blank after the joint had been popped back in that he wasn't to work for the next month… she'd never felt so guilty in her life. Everything that had happened so far… if the book of cards had never been opened, none of this would of happened, not only that but she'd been the one to read out 'Windy', sending the crazy cards out into the world.
Once they arrived at the home, shoes were left at the door while Tomoyo and Sakura settled down on the floor with Kero. Minutes later Kagome came in with several sweets, most of them for Kero and his horrible sweet tooth while the girls talked, "I was talking with Kero about what happened at the shop, and about what happened at school today."
"It was rather odd, do you think it's a clow card?" Tomoyo asked, a small elegant finger tapped against her bottom lip.
"Man… she's a sharp one, Kagome!" Kero grinned making Tomoyo and Sakura giggle. But, that might have had something to do with the cool whip that was smeared around his mouth like a strange beard. "Yes, I think it's a card. In fact, I'm nearly positive that it's the Shadow card… Tomoyo, hasn't something like this happened before and it's always over night?"
Sakura's eyes widened, "Like yesterday… all the books were stacked on the teachers desks… in every class, or the day before when all the gym equipment was in the coach's office."
Kero nodded, "Correct."
"What are you going to do, Kagome?" Sakura finally asked.
"Well, I have a plan but I'll need your help to complete it." Kagome smiled.
Tomoyo's eyes seemed to glitter with an evil delight, "What do we get in return?"
Kagome groaned as she listened in to what Tomoyo wanted, she knew Sakura would just like more cooking lessons if only to shove it into Touya's face. This wasn't going to be a lot of fun… of that she was sure….
It had been several hours since they had discussed their battle plans for the night, and she really wanted to cry. Tomoyo had gotten her way, and that's how she, Kagome Higurashi, ended up in something that would be most teenage boy's wet dreams.
It was very much like something a gymnast or maybe an ice skater would wear, it was really fashioned after a Leotard with long sleeves, it was completely without shoulders and cut a straight line across the tops of her breasts. The bottom was a soft cream white in color which stopped just below her breasts while the top was a deep blue color, while the sleeves were the same cream color as the torso. At the bottom just above her butt, tails much like those seen on a butler's coat ran down the back of her legs, she could barely feel the tails at all because of the long thigh high stiletto boots that were the same blue of her top. Tomoyo had gotten a hold of her hair and had it yanked up piled atop her head while random corkscrew curls fell around her ears and the back of her neck. A small toy sized top hat was pinned into her hair, it was another shade of cream while a thick navy band ran around its middle, varying feathers of blue and black thrust up from the side of the hat were they were attached at the band.
Kagome looked over herself, "Tomoyo, I look like a prostitute! What if Touya sees this?"
"Maybe he'll sweep you away on a romantic night!" Tomoyo replied, stars in her eyes.
Sakura sweatdropped, why was she getting involved with this again?
"I think you look cute, Kagome!"
"You're only saying that because you got a top hat too, Kero," Kagome pouted, she wanted to yell at Tomoyo. She didn't really care if Touya saw her in something like this, but at the same time she sorta wanted to know what he would say.
"Let's just go and get this over with." Kagome sighed, releasing the key she had to blink. It was different than it had been the first time she'd released it. Originally, the beak and the bottom had been a dark shade of pink or a light red, while the eye had been a nice bright blue, now it seemed that the beak and the gem at its bottom were a vibrant but deep blue color.
"Kero, is the wand supposed to change?" Sakura asked, her bright green eyes curious.
Kero blinked before he studied the wand, oh geez, he didn't want to explain this! "The pink was the wands original form, the more Kagome uses it, the more it will change to suit her powers." Maybe that would satisfy them?
"Oh… that's sorta neat! I beat if it was Tomoyo, it would be purple!" Sakura smiled.
"Okay ladies, focus! Tomoyo, Sakura, go ahead and get to the stadium. I'm going to get ready." Kagome grinned, she watched the girls leave before striking the fly card and grinned when the large ten foot wing span unraveled. She nearly yelped when she sat on the long thin pole, it was extremely uncomfortable and pondered about getting Fly to just take on its nature form.
Flying forward she found herself low to the ground, roughly floating three to four feet above the ground. As she rounded the corner in to the sports field, something large and round could be seen in the corner of her eye and she had to force herself to fly up high into the air. After the adrenaline high calmed, she realized it was just one of those large round bouncy balls that a lot of the grade schoolers used.
Eyes went wide as they watched the school's statue floating in the air, suddenly a darker shadow appeared and the thing was thrown her way. Dodging to the left she found herself going higher and higher, but no matter how high she was in the air the dark shadow card simply followed.
Throwing out one of the cards, Kagome shouted, "Windy, become a great defense!"
Just as a large piercing shadow came toward her face, something akin to a shield surrounded her. After the shadow backed off for a few seconds, Kagome found herself inside a whirling sphere, it seemed to be of a high velocity if the sound was anything to go off.
"NOW, TOMOYO!" Kagome could only grin when the lights were switched on and a number of the shadowy points seemed to just disappear. The overhead lights of the grade school track and sports field glared down upon them all with a great intensity, it faded back until all that was left was a shadowy figure covered in a large draping cloak.
Slowly the figure turned, before it began to rise up into the air until it seemed as if it was on a level platform with Kagome. When the figure lifted its arm, a surge of nothing but shadows came rushing toward her. Windy's sphere of protection seemed to wrap the shadow and repeal it back toward the figure. One surge, a second surge, the closer they got the more determined she became, "Wind, bind him!"
Just as another surge of shadow rushed forward Windy wrapped around it, as the card was trapped Kagome raised her wand, "Return to the guide you were meant to be in! CLOW CARD!"
Kagome smiled when she watched the card float to her before she two descended to the ground, her heels making small sounds as she was finally on the ground, "How was that?"
"Great!" Sakura grinned, hugging the older girl.
"It filmed very well, Kagome!" Tomoyo grinned as she rubbed her camera.
Kagome just grinned, "Let's go home… I'm really tired." The girls agreed, Tomoyo left with a number of her family's bodyguards, while Kagome walked Sakura home. After waving the girl off, Kagome continued until she opened her apartment door, locking it she plopped down on one of the many colored beanbag chairs.
Kero frowned, "Kagome… what's bothering you?"
"The cards… I wonder if I should tell Touya." Kagome finally answered, she'd been staring at the clock for a while, trying to figure out what to do.
Kero frowned, "I don't know if that's such a good idea."
"But what if they hurt him again, this time it was because he was protecting me… what about next time?" Kagome asked, her eyes were worried and tired.
"Give it time." Kero replied, he really wasn't sure if this should be known about by any more people.
Kagome smiled weakly, "Alright, I'll wait. Let's head to sleep, 'kay?"
Kero grinned before floating ahead in excitement, her bed was soo comfy! Before looking back briefly, he had to admit that it was a little nerve racking to think about, maybe things wouldn't be to troublesome. Dark golden eyes glowed as they watched the girl setting into a deep sleep, the cards knew… and that could only mean more problems.